The Fan and the Crescent Blade
by Capricious Kiwi
Summary: One was a Warrior, the other a Soldier. One fought to save a Kingdom, the other fought to conquer it. They would both become its prisoners. Could they work together to escape? Could there be something more between them than a just truce? Likely Suki x OC
1. Illusions of Victory

**A.N.: Well, my first story! I've thought a lot about this and though it's not exactly complete in my mind yet, I think I shall begin it. There are ways I'm hoping it to turn out but I'm still uncertain at this point of exactly how to go about it. There's also always the chance that I may get considerable negative feedback and this one goes over like the proverbial lead balloon. I'm hopeful though. So… without further jabbering here it goes!**

**Disclaminator: Of course, I don't own Avatar: TLA or any of the characters in the show. However I do own Zhi and my other OC secondary characters. **

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The Fan and the Crescent Blade

Chapter One: Illusions of Victory

The great wall of Ba Sing Se had been breached from the inside! Even before the dust had settled the "parade" of Fire Nation might had marched forward; spearheading the long line of troops, tanks and mounted cavalrymen walked the nation's elite Firebending soldiers, clad in their red armor, faces covered by the skull masks of their helmets.

The impenetrable city had fallen, not to the sheer ferocity of the Nation's troops, not by superior numbers and not even by technological might, but by the cunning, treacherous and manipulative tactics of one Princess Azula.

At the center of the "parade", a pair of large, enclosed carriages pulled along by Komodo Rhinos moved toward the breach. The first carriage was considerably smaller, and though it displayed a pair of Fire Nation flags that flapped in the breeze and plaques on each side denoting it as an Official's personal transport, it was no comparison to the carriage that followed it.

Massive, crimson, ornate and covered in golden trim work; the second carriage was undoubtedly one meant only for use by Royalty.

Walking proudly beside the first carriage strode a young man clad in the standard armor of a Fire Nation Polearmsman. Clasped in his hands he held a shortened Guan Dao style pole weapon which matched his shorter stature. Dangling from the spike at the back of the weapon's blade hung a small red tassel, a personalized touch. Attached by a strap to his belt there hung a standard short sword for closer range combat.

If not for his armor the teen could hardly be considered imposing, he was short and thin with quite pale skin; even for a Fire Nation citizen. His grinning face was slim and rather plain, a faint attempt at growing a mustache just visible. The young man's eyes were rather large and light gray in color, instantly denoting him as one who lacked the ability to Firebend.

Hidden completely beneath his cone shaped helmet he possessed a considerable amount of black hair, most of which was pulled back and bound into a classic top-knot by a red band. Around his neck he wore, upon a thin gold chain, an odd trinket; a delicate looking golden flame pendant. A necklace often worn by fashionable and powerful women of the Fire Nation.

The first carriage had just reached the wall and within one last turn of its wheels would officially enter the city. Just before the last turn of the wheels, and before stepping foot across the invisible boundary, the young Fire Nation soldier paused and peered up at the ends of the broken walls to his sides, considering the significance of the moment.

Coming up behind him, and moving along at the same pace as the rest of the "parade" came a rather unkempt looking Sergeant with a thick black beard. He hadn't noticed that the fellow in front of him had stopped and nearly ran right into him. "Zhi! What're you doing? Get _moving,_" Sergeant Zhuk barked.

The young man snapped back to reality and looked over his shoulder at his commanding officer. "I'm… just taking in the moment! This is a big day! A defining moment in my life, even," he replied, quickly.

"Well, Pe-Em Zhi," replied Zhuk, gruffly, using the shortened title of a Polearmsman. "you can define the moments of your life once we've finished escorting Governor Yung to the Royal Palace, now move."

Zhi nodded and turned back to the path ahead, the carriage was already a ways ahead by now and other soldiers in the young man's unit were beginning to bunch up behind him and Zhuk, all wondering what the hold up was.

Pm. Zhi took a deep breath and let it out quickly then took his first step into Ba Sing Se. After this first step he took off at a jog and caught back up with the carriage. Fortunately no hard-line officers had noticed the pause, and Zhi knew that his Sergeant wouldn't reprimand him any further.

With a jubilant stride Zhi marched on; he'd never felt so proud in his life and figured that he must have worn the biggest, stupidest grin upon his face. He thought of how proud his mother, father and sister would be when they heard he'd been among the first troops into Ba Sing Se.

He scanned the great city with wide eyes, taking in all of the sights as the procession made its way to the Royal Palace. He barely noticed the crowds of Earth Nation citizens watching from the sides of the road and from their homes with frightened and somber looks.

He also failed to notice, as the majority of the Fire Nation soldiers had, that, upon the roofs of homes and businesses, there were Dai Li Agents crouched, all watching the "parade" move by.

The "parade" eventually reached the Royal Palace, by now; the great lumbering tanks had taken the lead and approached the Palace grounds before parting off and making way for the two carriages that came up from the center of the line.

Zhi, Zhuk and the rest of their unit lined up at attention beside the first carriage as it came to a stop before the entrance to the Earth Kingdom's Palace grounds.

Zhi watched carefully out of the corner of his eye as Governor Yung; the man Firelord Ozai had chosen to rule the newly conquered city, stepped from his carriage and, flanked on either side by elite firebenders, approached the arched entrance way.

_Yung has__ probably never been farther from home._ Zhi thought, observing the Governor in his overly ornate robes trot haughtily forward.

A figure… no... two, no, three… four figures appeared from the arch way and met Yung halfway from the entrance. Yung immediately bowed deeply and turned his head toward the assembled soldiers. "Kneel before Your Princess, Azula and Prince Zuko the Redeemed!" shouted the Governor.

Like a wave rolling forward the soldiers standing at attention kneeled and bowed their heads. Zhi instantly followed as those around him showed their respect.

If he tilted his head up slightly, he could clearly see the group standing before Yung and he watched carefully, certain he was one of hundreds peering from under the brims of their helmets. Zhi recognized the Princess, despite her dark green Earth Nation outfit, as well as two other girls; he'd never seen them before but assumed they were friends of the Princess.

Yung and the Princess spoke and exchanged a number of scrolls; Zhi was too far away to make out what they were saying and continued to survey the group. Standing quietly at the rear was Prince Zuko; Zhi had heard of the Prince but had never actually seen him before.

Zhi knew that the Prince was only a few months older then he was and had been told the story of Zuko's banishment and the quest set upon his shoulders to find the Avatar many times. Seeing him standing beside his sister was a pleasant sight to the young soldier.

Yung seemed to be finishing up and bowed graciously before the Princess before stepping from her path. Azula had turned back toward the archway and snapped her fingers; instantly a pair of Dai Li agents appeared and between the walked what appeared to be an old man.

Zhi watched the man as he was lead forward by the Agents upon a chain leash; his hands tied behind his back, a black bag covering his head and a metal collar around his neck. Before he could get a better look at the old man Azula had turned and with her friends, brother, agents and the captive close behind, and proceeded toward the second carriage.

Unbeknownst to Zhi or any of the other Fire Nation citizens, there stood, in the shadows, atop the Palace grounds entrance wall; Long Feng. The Grand Secretariat looked down upon the Royals, officials and assembled soldiers in the court yard and smirked to himself as Azula and her group prepared to leave the city.

Yung looked back toward the assembled soldiers and nodded, "Rise!" he called and the wave of red and gold rose rippling backwards down the line. The Governor and his elite firebenders proceeded into the entrance of the Palace grounds.

Sergeant Zhuk and the officer of the group on the other side of the carriage walked forward and called to their men to follow. Zhi trotted forward after his Sergeant followed by the other soldiers in his unit, they had received the honor of acting as a part of Governor Yung's personal guard in the Palace.

_What a glorious day! Victory! And I'm part of it, not a thing can stop us, not a thing can spoil this! _Thought Zhi, as he stepped onto the grounds of the Royal Palace, once home to the fifty-second Earth King. The young polearmsman hadn't any idea of how wrong he was, in the coming week, things would change. Swiftly.

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**A/N: Thanks for ****taking the time to read the first chapter of my first story! I hope you enjoyed it, tell me what you think! **

**I hope to get the second chapter up in the next three or four days. **

**Edits: Thanks to PetertheChameleon, I've made alterations to the two points he brought to my attention, I think they've both been adequately corrected. **

**Preview: Perhaps get to know Zhi a bit better and maaaaybe the second main character in this little story will be revealed!**


	2. Rock and Awe

**A.N.: Thank you for the Reviews! I love reader feedback. I even went back and edited some things in chapter one. And now… Chapter two! (Yes, the title is corny but it fits oh so well, hehe…)**

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Chapter Two: Rock and Awe

Three days had passed since the great procession had marched to the Royal Palace of Ba Sing Se and things seemed to be going exactly as planned.

The flag of the Earth Kingdom was brought down and laid as a doormat upon the steps of the Royal Palace so that anyone entering or leaving through the main entrance would tread upon the flag of the Nation's enemy. A massive black and red Fire Nation flag was raised in its place and the national anthem was sung as it took to the air.

With the great honor of being part of Governor Yung's personal guard Zhi and his unit had been given a now unused area; formally the sleeping quarters for, only, a small number of the Royal Palace's serving staff. However, since the cities fall and the taking of the Palace to serve as the headquarters to the new Provincial Fire Nation government; many of the servants had been expelled.

The Palace itself was massive; filled with a thousand rooms, hundreds of hallways, galleries and even an extensive menagerie, home to the former King's collection of rare and exotic animals.

The former servants' quarters were far up on the Palace's fourth story and consisted of two large rooms that opened to a long, exposed hallway. The left side: a plain wall and to the right a chest high wall that overlooked the long four story drop, like one long balcony. If one stood at the wall they would be treated to an expansive view of the city and the gentle breeze that swept into the hallway.

Pm. Zhi had brought with him a small flag of his native country and had proudly draped it over the chest high wall, securing it with a few bits of string to a rain gutter that ran its length. To anyone down below, the flag would be clearly visible against the earthy tones of the Palace wall.

The two rooms that would serve as the troop's new home were spacious with large tables in the centers and wooden bunk beds that were positioned along the perimeter of each room. The floors were covered with large ornate stone patterns forming the green circle with the square in the center; the symbol of the Earth Kingdom.

The soldiers had settled in well despite the delayed arrival their personal possessions, the Palace was quite an improvement over the small tents that had served as their sleeping quarters before the fall of the city.

Zhi had quickly picked himself out a comfortable looking bottom bunk along the center of the wall near a brazier. He enjoyed reading and the light source would allow him to see once the sun had passed out of view the room's entrance.

He'd slept very well the first night and was surprised at how soft the bunk was. It was believed in the Fire Nation that 'in the Earth Kingdom, beds are as hard as rocks.' The delivery of his duffel bag helped to further make the young soldier at home.

It was a generally accepted practice to have the soldiers' personal items shipped in separately when entering a new area of occupation. Troops with weapons bared and marching in step were far more intimidating than troops lugging their things around on their backs.

Zhi had already placed his Guan Dao against the wall beside his bunk, just within arms reach. His sword and its strap he set beneath the bunk, also easily accessible at a moment's notice, though he wasn't at all worried that something might happen.

The young soldier had one more, small, weapon in his arsenal; a three inch knife with a wooden handle that he kept in a small pouch strapped around the lower part of his right leg and concealed beneath the shin guard of his boot. Zhi knew most soldiers carried a small knife of some sort, but he felt his was special; it had been a gift from his father and he rarely went anywhere without it.

When he had received his duffel bag Zhi had quickly unpacked; he'd set a small framed picture of his family at the head of his bunk on the edge of its wooden frame, smiling at the sight of those he missed. He also retrieved his current book, laying it upon the bed. Zhi left his bed robes and extra clothing folded in his bag which he stowed beneath the bunk with the sword.

With three days and two nights passed as a resident of the Palace, things had become routine for Zhuk's Third General Infantry Platoon. They'd conducted one drill and had traded off patrol and guard duties with another Platoon quartered on the other side of the Palace, work that left them with much free time.

Some of Zhi's fellow soldiers explored the Palace while others had gone down into Ba Sing Se to see the city and take advantage of its services. Some had stayed in the bunk rooms and read or slept and Zhi was certain that the Pai Sho addict Corporal Huế was relieving other soldiers of their pay in the adjacent bunk room.

Zhi had been on the morning patrol shift and had seen a great deal of the Palace before returning to the bunks for midday meal. The food was better than average, now that the Army's mess service personnel actually had real kitchens to work out of.

But he couldn't help thinking what it would have been like to have food prepared by the former Earth King's cooks. Zhi knew this was an impossibility as it was forbidden to have the soldiers' food prepared by those under occupation, the threat of being poisoned was said to be "too high to take chances."

After eating, Zhi found himself a pen, some ink and a piece of paper with official looking Earth Kingdom Royal Palace borders at its edges. _This will be perfect for a letter home, _thought Zhi, as he started his letter. He made certain to describe the great city and the Palace and promised, in the coming days, to find a special gift for his younger sister who would soon be entering a Firebending academy as she'd proven herself to be quite gifted.

Zhi let his family know how well he was doing and how the occupation was progressing, he finished up wishing them love and reassured them that he would write again in the next few days. After finding a suitable envelope and addressing it to his home back in the Fire Nation's westernmost province, he dropped it into the outgoing mail bag by the door.

The young soldier strode back to his bed and sat down with his back against the wall, snatching up his book he began to read. He was interrupted however when the fellow occupying the bunk above him, a new addition to the unit whom Zhi figured was even younger than himself, leaned over the side of the bunk and questioned Zhi.

"What're you reading there?" asked the new addition, whose name was Ning.

Zhi looked up from his page and held up the novel. "Oh, this? It's sort've an adventure science fiction story. This guy makes a giant machine that flies, it's got big wings that flap and they're powered by this big old steam engine. Anyway, he goes off in search of this lost city in the mountains that everyone thinks is a myth."

"Dose he find the city?" asked Ning, curiously.

Zhi grinned, "Not sure yet, I'm only a third of the way into the book. But I bet he will, considering how these books usually turn out."

Ning appeared to be ready to ask another question when three other soldiers burst into the bunk room. "We're back! Sergeant Zhuk, we're back from the city!" called one of the soldiers.

Zhuk sat up in his bunk where he'd been asleep and rubbed his eyes. "You could've told me when I woke up, soldier," said the Sergeant in his usual, less than pleased tone.

The ever curious Ning sat back up on his bunk and faced their comrades. "What were you guys up to in the city?"

Zhi dog-eared the page he was on and set his book aside to listen. The lead soldier whom Zhi recognized as a Corporal chuckled at Ning. "Why, we visited the finest brothel in the upper ring!"

"Oh," Ning replied and was silent; Zhi figured he was rather embarrassed discussing such a subject.

The two other soldiers went to their bunks while the Corporal strode arrogantly up the center of the room. "Zhi," said the Corporal eyeing the young Polearmsman, "you ought to give your book there a rest and join us in the city next time, there're good times to be had for little coin," he said smirking.

Zhi cleared his throat. "Oh.. I couldn't, I just.. you know?" The Corporal furrowed his brow and let out a chuckle.

"Know what? You've got a girl back home or something, tryin' to stay faithful or somethin? It's not like she's ever gonna find out."

"Well, no, I haven't. But.. I'm.. just rather shy.. around women," replied Zhi, trying to choose he words carefully. This brought forth roaring chuckles from many of the soldiers in the room as well as grumbling from Sergeant Zhuk who rolled over on his bunk and covered his head with his pillow.

"_You, shy?_" asked one of the other soldiers. Zhi only grinned nervously. "You should hear his stories… and hell, don't get him started on "the economical ramification" of this or that. Nearly impossible to get him to shut up once you've got him going," said another grinning and Zhi and shaking his head.

Zhi chuckled and stood up from his bunk, he knew the others liked mess with him from time to time. "Well, consider this," Zhi began, a smirk on his face, "there're nearly one million people in this city, in other words, a million consumers who'll soon be buying mass produced Fire Nation goods…" There was a collective groan from the soldiers occupying the bunk room.

The young soldier grinned and shook his head. "Alright, alright. Think I'm going to go see Corporal Huế for a round of Pai Sho next door."

"Good luck!" said Ning, calling after him. Zhi turned and nodded back before turning out into the hallway.

He approached the edge of the wall and peered down at the four story drop to the court yard below, a shiver going up his spine at the sight. Zhi had a terrible fear of heights but the view of the city was far too impressive not to stop and have a look.

The sun was setting on the other side of the Palace and its last rays fell upon the city before Zhi. He had to admit, it was a beautiful city.

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A few miles outside of Ba Sing Se a caravan of Fire Nation supply wagons moved forward along a dirt road toward the city. The caravan was lead by an old veteran Quartermaster by the name of Zou who'd been a member of the Army's logistics services since he'd joined up nearly twenty years earlier.

It would be his second run from the Fire Nation's new supply port, near the Serpent's Pass, to Ba Sing Se and he was still rather unsure of the route, despite the maps he'd been provided.

There was a sign post up ahead indicating a left turn to reach the breach in the city's wall and Zou ordered the caravan to turn. The veteran reached into his pocket and removed a pocket watch on a chain, with a quick look at the watch's face he grinned, they were making excellent time.

The wall soon came into view and one of the Rhino drivers sitting at the front of Zou's wagon pointed out that the wall looked rather strange.

Zou acquired a spy glass from one of his soldiers and took a good look at the length of the wall; his grin turned immediately to a scowl, the breach was nowhere in sight.

The Quartermaster quickly halted the caravan and sent two of his best riders back to the sign post. They returned shortly and reported that the sign post appeared to have been switched around. Something, Zou knew, was very wrong.

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Back at the Palace, young Zhi had taken some time to admire the great city before making his way into the second bunk room where Corporal Huế was trying to convince a few other soldiers that he would "go easy on them" if they played a round.

It didn't appear to Zhi that the street-smart Corporal was very successful in attracting a new victim for his prized White Jade Tile offense to clobber.

The young Polearmsman wasn't much of a Pai Sho player but a round every now and then could be fun, even if it usually cost him a bit of his pay. Huế turned around in his chair to face Zhi as he crossed the threshold into the bunk room from the hall. "Wanna try your hand, Zhi?"

"Sounds fine, Corporal," replied Zhi taking a seat at the opposite end of the table, the Pai Sho mat was already arranged before him. "C'mon now, you don't need to address me by rank, just call me Huế," said the Corporal in a friendly tone.

"Alright, Huế, lets see what you've got," replied Zhi taking a few coins out of a pouch attached to his belt and stacking them on the table.

A few other soldiers lingered around and watched game that went on as expected; Huế had won the last three rounds and the money Zhi had brought was quickly added to the Corporal's stack. "Why don't you bet that silly necklace there?" asked Huế pointing at the pendant hanging around Zhi's neck.

Zhi held the pendant in his hand, peering down at it for a moment. "Not a chance," he said with a smile, "it's my good luck charm." Huế rolled his eyes, "Alright then, I'm not one to part a man from his good luck," replied the Corporal. _A lot of luck it had brought Zhi during the games,_ Huế had thought.

"Would you like to hear the story of how I got this?" asked Zhi, his eyes lighting up. Huế chuckled, "I've heard it, Zhi, I've heard it." The Corporal scooped up the Pai Sho tiles on the mat and placed them in a pouch upon his belt, then rolled up the mat itself.

"Good games though, you're improving," said Corporal Huế, rising from his chair. Zhi was about to respond when a man dressed in the green robes of the Dai Li walked calmly into the bunk room.

Huế turned around and gave the intruder a questioning look, "What do you think you're doing, coming in here?" asked the Corporal. The man gave him a cold look and spoke calmly, "Would you please step out into the hallway with me for a moment, Corporal?"

Huế set his Pai Sho mat on the table and walked coolly out into the hallway. Zhi watched as the two men conversed in front of the bunk room's entrance. The Dai Li Agent said something quietly to Huế and the Corporal's expression changed from one of certainty to that of anger.

"If you really expect us to hand over our weapons, you've got another thing coming," said Corporal Huế jabbing his finger into the Agent's chest to emphasize his point.

"I expected as much," muttered the Agent, before stepping back and out of Zhi's range of view through the entrance.

Corporal Huế never had a chance to get out of the way, his arm still extended, finger pointing forward, the look on is face changed to one of shock. Zhi watched, unable to act as a sharp cone-shaped fragment of stone struck Huế in the side sending him spinning sideways against the wall next to the bunk room's entrance.

Pai Sho tiles skittered across the stone floor and some came to rest in the entrance way. Three Dai Li Agents leapt forward landing before the threshold where Corporal Huế had once stood. Zhi sprung out of his chair and, catching the pointed up-turned toe of his boot under the edge of the table, flipped the piece of furniture onto its side in an attempt to block the Dai Li Agents.

The overturned table did little to stop the Agent's advance and they had quickly launched another large chunk of the stone floor at the barrier. Zhi clumsily leapt out of the way as the rock smashed through the table sending splinters of wood flying.

By now the other soldiers in the room had leapt into action. Zhi slid across the stone floor and scrambled to his feet, he would need to get into the next room to get his Guan Dao and sword if he were to have any chance at aiding his comrades.

The cry pierced the air, Zhi was unsure who had shouted but it didn't matter now. "We're under attack!"

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Across the Palace grounds there lay the Ba Sing Se Prison, constructed on orders from Long Feng years before as a "Solution to the growing crime epidemic in the city that threatened the rule of the Earth King."

In reality the prison was built to hold those who questioned the Grand Secretariat and his Agents, political prisoners who had spoken out against the Government and a few others who had found themselves imprisoned due to the actions of the Fire Nation's ruthless Princess.

On the whole, the prison had been left in the hands of the Dai Li, as the Fire Nation had little interest in the prisoners kept there and its day to day operation had not changed since the city's fall.

The prison was quite large and contained many cells, the majority of which had yet to be filled. The cells were typically small but the inner ones were by far the worst; eight by eight feet with no bed or any real place to sleep and no light source besides torches that were spaced along the wall outside the cells.

The inner cells did not have real walls separating them, only two sets of bars at each side that acted a barrier between neighboring cells. The rear wall was solid metal and the front one, also consisting of bars, had a door built in. Despite the attempts to cut down on material costs using mainly barred walls, the prison was the largest all-metal structure in the city.

In one of these inner cells resided a single captive. No other inmates were kept in that particular block and the only visitors the young captive received were the occasional guards passing by or the arrival of her meager twice-a-day meals.

The girl herself appeared to be roughly fifteen or sixteen with reddish-brown hair that appeared matted and unwashed. She wore a filthy and ripped brown robe with a bit of rope tied around her waist and lacked shoes. Her face was smeared with the remnants of full-face white makeup.

Her blue eyes stared into the passageway before her cell with a distant look, red and black eye-liner had run down and given her the appearance of one who had cried dark blood, the dried red trails had stained her cheeks. Around her mouth a red lip pigment was smeared with actual dried blood as well.

She was a far cry from the valiant warrioress who'd trained and led the island of Kyoshi's all-female warrior group. Inspired by a visit from the Avatar they'd ended their island's isolationism and had sought to aid the Earth Kingdom in their fight against the Fire Nation.

The Warrioress had met up with the Avatar and his companions a second time, including a water tribe boy whom she'd developed some feelings for, but they had soon gone their separate ways again. Sometime later she and her group of female warriors had found the Avatar's flying bison and then encountered that demon of a Princess from the Fire Nation.

The horrors that had followed their defeat and capture were memories the young warrioress fought to put out of her mind; at least she knew the Avatar's bison had escaped unharmed. But what would become of her now she could not say.

Suki had no idea that, in the next few hours, she would no longer be alone.

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**A.N.: Wow! That was a lot longer than I thought it would be.. I just kept getting new ideas! And I'm sorry if I ended it on yet _another _cliffhanger, it just seems that's how it turned out. Anyways, I hope all who read this new chapter enjoy it and.. please review! Gives me motivation to get to work on the next chapter!**

**Edits: Thanks once again to the keen eye of PetertheChameleon, I've re-read this chapter several times and made a number of corrections! **

**Preview: Chaos ensues as the attack unfolds! Perhaps our hero and heroine will meet, how will that turn out? **


	3. I was always a player or Neighbor

**A.N.: Thanks for the review! And to new readers; don't be shy! Tell me what you think! Ouch.. ooch.. some sad and painful things in this chapter… Yes, the chapter has two titles. **

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Chapter Three: I was always a player or Neighbor

"We're under attack!"

The three Dai Li Agents, standing at the threshold of the bunk room's entrance, each stomped a foot to the ground in unison causing three large chunks of the highly polished stone floor to rise up and hover in mid air. Zhi watched as the chunks rotated serenely, floating in the air, before the three agents thrust their fists forward sending the stones hurtling into the room like missiles.

Two Fire Nation soldiers narrowly dodged the incoming stones but a third was not so lucky; a chunk struck him, crushing the soldier into the wall at the back of the room.

The green robed attackers launched another volley of fractured floor into the bunk room sending the troops inside scrambling and leaping for cover, they were unable to mount an offensive with boulders whizzing by their heads and could only wait and hope for help to arrive.

Zhi felt helpless without his weapons and hopelessly pinned down, but then, there came a reprieve from the relentless storm of rock. The Agent to the right was about to bring forth another chunk from the now pitted floor when an unexpected blast of fire caught him from the side.

The stricken Agent cried out in agony as his robes burst into flames and he fell sideways into his comrades. A familiar voice echoed down the hallway from the direction of the other bunk room's entrance. "Time to earn your pay, gentlemen!" shouted Sergeant Zhuk, whom Zhi knew was, as the group's leader, the only Firebender in the unit.

The Dai Li officer, who had lead the Agents in their attack, leapt back and rushed away down the hallway, leaving his remaining subordinate to face the Fire Nation soldiers, now charging from the other bunk room.

Those who had been pinned down sprang from their places of cover and rushed the lone Agent, overtaking him with their spears and swords in a fury. Zhi, though unarmed, save for his knife, followed after them into the hallway where the two groups of soldiers converged.

Zhuk, often seen asleep or just acting lazy, had taken control of the situation in an instant. It had surprised Zhi how different Zhuk became when there were things that needed to be done and he thought briefly back to his first battle as a member of the Third GI Platoon in the Xai Fong Steppe.

But there was no time for the young soldier to reflect on past events, the Corporal who'd visited the brothel earlier that day was instructing all unarmed troops to swiftly arm themselves and return to the hall as quickly as possible.

Zhi sprinted down the hallway and into the bunk room; he reached his bunk and snatched up his sword, attaching the strap to his belt. He then reached for his pole weapon, still exactly where he'd left it upon returning from that morning's patrol. In his haste, however, he left behind his helmet which still sat upon the floor beside his bunk.

Pm. Zhi promptly joined the other members of his unit in the hallway, the sun had set now and the only illumination came from the oil lamps that lined the wall, their soft light dancing across the armed and very serious looking group.

Everyone was quiet as they waited for their orders, a few watched Zhuk waiting for him to speak, while others watched as the unit's medic inspected the inert form of Corporal Huế, who lay upon the ground with his back against the wall.

Zhi looked down upon the body of the fellow that he had, only moments before, been enjoying a rather one-sided game of Pai Sho with, the young soldier could see that the Corporal's crushed chest armor glistened with blood.

"He's gone, Sergeant. I'm sorry," said the unit's medic, solemnly. Zhuk knelt down and closed the late Corporal's lifeless eyes before quickly muttering Agni's prayer for the dead. "The other soldier that was hit?" asked Zhuk, addressing the medic.

"I'm afraid he didn't make it either, sir. These Agents are.. very precise," replied the medic, speaking slowly.

Zhuk gave a nod and grunted, but before he could speak another soldier pointed out at the city beyond the chest high wall. "Look out there," he said, a confused look upon his face.

Zhi, who'd been gripping his Guan Dao tightly, hungry for vengeance for his fallen comrades turned with the rest of the group and peered out at the city. Surprisingly, the city, which was normally brightly lit in the evenings, was almost completely dark. One could just make out the occasional flashes of light that flickered amongst the barely visible buildings down below.

The group watched in silence, a gentle breeze blew into the hallway and with it came the faint shouts and cries of men engaged combat as well as the scent of smoke.

Zhuk cleared his throat, "I don't know what's going on out there or in here for that matter, but I know one thing; we've got to reach Governor Yung. Now, form up, soldiers!" barked the Sergeant and with that the group formed into two lines, one behind Zhuk and the other behind the brothel Corporal.

The two lines jogged forward down the hallway toward Governor Yung's quarters; the former Earth King's master suite.

Zhi was ready for a fight and there was no time to waste.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

With the discovery of the switched sign Zou had ordered his caravan to turn around at once and head back towards the fork in the road. The veteran Quartermaster had considered the motives behind the sign switch, it could have easily been a prank executed by Earth Kingdom delinquents but Zou could not shake the strange feeling that there was something more to it.

With a few cracks of the drivers' whips the caravan had accelerated and soon reached the fork. Instead of continuing down the road back towards the port near the Serpent's Pass, Zou ordered them to turn up the route that had been indicated by the sign before it had been switched.

The last rays of the sun were disappearing behind the city when Zou's caravan reached the wall. The soldiers, drivers and their Quartermaster leader dismounted their respective wagons and Rhinos and slowly walked to the head of the caravan, all eyes fixated upon the sight before them.

The wall that had once been breached was now near fully repaired and towered above the caravan. Scattered about, at what had once been the Fire Nation's checkpoint and entrance into the city, were the bodies of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom soldiers.

No one spoke; there was nothing anyone could say. The city that had resisted the best the Fire Nation could throw at it for over one hundred years had seemingly escaped conquest once again.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Zhi's unit had picked up speed as they raced down the halls of the Royal Palace to the Governor's suite, the walls all seemed a blur to the young soldier as he followed the fellow in front of him.

They rounded a corner; standing before them was the Dai Li officer, now accompanied by four other Agents. Zhuk launched a blast of flame that rocketed down the hallway as the rest of the group charged forward. One of the Agents raised a barrier of stone that blocked the flames, but this was quickly over taken by the soldiers who leapt over and engaged the five Earthbenders in hand to hand or hand to rock combat.

The wave of red and black crashed upon the Agents who quickly tried to put some distance between themselves and the deadly spears and swords that flashed through the night air. Zhi saw a flash of green amongst the frenzy and jabbed his polearm in the direction where he'd last seen it.

Zhi's weapon caught only air, but as he carried through with the jab, bleeding off his momentum, he noticed one of the Agents scrambling up along the wall beside him, clearly using some sort of advanced Earthbending. The young soldier changed his grip upon his weapon and brought the point over to his right.

The sharp tip of the Guan Dao's crescent shaped blade caught the hem of the Agents robe and sparked as it drove through the fabric and met the stone wall. The Agent felt the tug and realized he'd been caught, he tried to jerk away but the well-made fabric would not give.

Zhi tried to focus as the other soldiers and Agents clashed around him, concentrating solely upon the fellow who he had snagged. The young soldier took a step forward and let out a shrill howl as he brought the counterweighted end of his weapon around, aiming for the Dai Li Agent before him.

The Agent swiftly ducked out of the way of Zhi's swing, the counterweighted end clipped off the golden prong atop his conical hat and sent it spiraling into the darkness. It was now the Agent's turn to strike and he let loose with the earthen glove on his right hand.

Zhi was still completing the swing, the end of his weapon clanging off the wall, when he saw the Agent preparing to attack. He tried to swing his Guan Dao's blade up and over his head then down upon the Agent but he only managed to free the blade and start the swing when the earthen glove, trademark weapon of the Dai Li, struck him in the side.

Despite his armor, the rock fist struck a hard blow, the air was forced from the young soldier's lungs as he was knocked hard against the wall, looseing his grip upon his weapon. Zhi staggered backwards, trying to catch his breath, as his Earthbending adversary prepared to launch another attack.

He managed to get a good lungful of air and leapt forward, reaching for his sword, his hand gripped the handle and the sword slipped free of its strap at his left hip. Zhi brought the sword up in a slashing motion from left to right but the blade stopped before it connected with flesh.

Zhi stared dumbly at the blade of his sword, now firmly grasped in the gloved hand of the Agent. Zhi's wide, gray eyes traveled up the length of the Agent's arm to his face, the Agent grinned sadistically for a split second, but this would be the last act of his life.

Another sword slashed in from the corner of Zhi's eye striking the Dai Li Agent's arm, the Agent howled in pain and stumbled backwards, tripping over Zhi's lost weapon, landing upon the stone floor. Before he was able to get back on his feet another Fire Nation soldier came forward from the darkness, spear point angled downward, and delivered the deathblow.

When the sword had sliced into the Agent's arm he had released his hold upon Zhi's weapon and the Polearmsman had quickly sheathed his own sword. Spotting his Guan Dao lying upon the ground, Zhi caught the tip of his boot under the weapon's shaft and popped it up into the air where he caught it with both hands.

Zhuk shouted over the clamor for the group to move forward, they'd lost six of their men to the Agents but not one of the Earthbenders was left standing.

Despite their losses, the group forged ahead down the darkened hallways of the Palace where they soon came to an intersection, Zhuk turned about, looking down each hall to get his bearings. Zhi took a moment to inspect the group; their numbers had indeed diminished and he could not spot young Ning anywhere.

He was no stranger to war, and had lost friends before, but it still stung, it struck him, how fragile life was; people you'd been with one minute were dead the next.

Sergeant Zhuk seemed to have found the way and lead his troops down the hall to their right, Zhi had no time to mourn the dead, his commitment to his country came first and his will remained unshaken, he charged on with his fellow soldiers.

It was not long until the group reached the entrance to a large room, its ornate doors were closed to the Fire Nation soldiers but that did not deter them from taking the shortcut to Governor Yung's sleeping quarters.

Zhuk carefully tried the doors' knobs but they would not budge, locked from the inside. "Prepare to breach," said Zhuk, stepping back from the doors. The soldiers lined up at both sides, ready to surge into the room, Zhi the third one from the door in the second line.

"Breaching!" shouted Zhuk charging forward. The gruff Sergeant kicked hard against the doors, his foot connecting just below the two knobs. There was a great crack and the two doors flung open, crashing against their stops. Before the doors swung closed from the force the two lines of soldiers charged into the room and fanned out.

Zhi looked about, his eyes had adjusted to the dark and as far as he could see, the room was occupied only by a large conference table, chairs and a few statues but nowhere did he see signs of the enemy. The group made their way slowly through the room towards the doors at the opposite end, each soldier holding his weapon at the ready.

Once the room was confirmed clear the soldiers relaxed a bit and prepared to move out into the hallway that would lead them directly to Governor Yung. But before Sergeant Zhuk reached the door, one of the soldiers near the conference table pointed to the ceiling and shouted something about bats.

From the stone ceiling nine Dai Li Agents, firmly planted upside down like terrible Earthbending bats, began raining rock down upon the Fire Nation soldiers, caught off guard and confined in the conference room below.

"Get out! Get out into the hallway!" roared Sergeant Zhuk before a fragment launched by the Agents struck him at an angle, sending him spinning crazily into a wall.

Many tried to escape the hail of stone by racing for the doors at the ends of the room but they were soon cut down and buried beneath the ceiling fragments. Zhi shoved the soldier in front of him out of the path of a falling chunk but the impact tossed him into the side of the large stone conference table.

His right upper arm met the table first, there was a sickening pop and a terrible pain shot through his shoulder and arm as he tumbled to the ground. Zhi groaned and cradled his right arm with his left, slowly rising to his feet, he looked around the room, which was now permeated be an unearthly silence.

A Dai Li Agent landed gracefully upon the rubble littered table next to Zhi and the young soldier turned to face him. "You… dirteaters!" shouted Zhi defiantly, now realizing he was unable to fight with his injured arm and shoulder, though how much damage he'd suffered was not clear.

The Agent preformed a series of swift movements and the floor beneath Zhi's feet shifted sending him tumbling backwards, his head striking a statues' base. The Polearmsman never really felt the impact, to Zhi there seemed to be a great burst of stars before his eyes, then darkness.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Unlike the rest of the city, Throne Room of the Royal Palace was well lit, candles and braziers burned providing ample light for those coming and going. Upon the former Earth King's throne there sat Long Feng, a pleased expression upon his face.

The Grand Secretariat watched as a Dai Li officer approached the throne and bowed. "I have the latest reports for you, sir," said the Agent. "Yes?" replied Long Feng, peering down upon the officer from his elevated position.

"The Palace is ours, sir. The Firebender unit was the first to be ambushed, there were no survivors. Both of the Non-bender units managed to put up a bit of a fight but we were able to contain and destroy them, there a six survivors; five of which we do not expect to survive the night."

The new ruler of Ba Sing Se nodded to his subordinate. "Excellent, and what of Governor Yung and the rest of the city?" he asked coolly. "Last I heard our men had apprehended the Governor in his quarters, they should be arriving here with him shortly. As for the rest of the city, sir, all reports indicate that Fire Nation forces were caught off guard and quickly crushed."

Long Feng gave another curt nod, "And the wall?"

The Dai Li officer cleared his throat, "The wall is nearly completely repaired, sir. It was wise of you to have our men sink it beneath the ground instead of just demolishing it," he said, attempting to earn the new ruler's favor with a compliment.

"You are dismissed, Agent," said Long Feng, considering the news. The Agent bowed deeply and strode off to assure that the Fire Nation's Governor was being escorted to the Throne Room as quickly as possible.

The Grand Secretariat, or as he now liked to think of himself; the new Earth King, smirked to himself. He thought back to his first attempt to take control from the Fire Nation's Princess, remembering her words; _"__Don't flatter yourself. You were never even a player."_

His smirk curled into a cruel smile, _How wrong you were, Princess. I was always a player, and your leaving has cost you the game. _

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Far from the light and comfort of the Throne Room, across the grounds and deep in that cold, iron hell known as the Ba Sing Se Prison, alone and silent in her cell there sat the young, former leader of the Kyoshi Warriors.

_Morning or evening? Day or night? What day _was_ it?_ Suki had lost all track of time; there was nothing but four walls around her and a long torch-lit hallway before her, this was now her world, and had been for the past week.

She was the last survivor of the Kyoshi warriors, of those who had survived the fight with the Fire Nation Princess and her friends, two had been executed by the Princess herself with the intent of instilling fear in the others. Suki could vividly remember the terrified looks upon their faces before their Royal captor had taken their lives in a flash of blue flame.

Before being taken to the prison, Suki, along with one other surviving warrior, had been stripped of their possessions and given only the tattered brown robes, which she still wore. They'd been blindfolded and made to walk many miles, where exactly they were taken neither knew.

Eventually they had reached the undisclosed destination and were kept in a large tent. Their hands and feet were bound and they were kept under constant surveillance by Royal Guard Firebenders. Here, they were fed very little and received occasional harassment from the Princess up until they were told she had better things to do.

The next night they were marched from their tent and forced into the back of a covered wagon. Suki had tried to get free of her bindings in hopes of escaping but the other warrioress had become listless and lacked the will to even consider escape. Suki could not leave her friend behind and resigned herself to remain at her side in hopes of getting through to her and escaping later.

When the wagon finally stopped men in green robes wearing conical hats had leapt inside and dragged the two young women out. The men had forced Suki to her feet but her friend would not stand, they prodded the poor girl and Suki had shouted at them and ordered them to stop but they had not listened to her.

She was forced away from her friend, yelling and cursing the men to the Unagi all the way as she was lead to the entrance to the prison that loomed in the darkness. The spirited Warrioress had resisted and fought the men, wriggling from their grip several times, only to be recaptured by their earthen gloved hands.

With great difficulty they had eventually deposited her into the cell she now occupied, she had yet to see the other girl since their separation.

Some time later Suki received a visit from the Princess of the Fire Nation. She had come dressed in Suki's own robes and armor and mocked the captive warrioress, sharing with her the fate she had planned for city and the Avatar. Suki had turned her head and refused to listen to Azula, which the Princess had found infuriating.

Soon, however, the demonic young woman tired of talking _at_ the defiant warrioress and promised that she would return, after the city was hers, and make Suki pay for her insolence. Suki had, fortunately, heard nothing more from the Princess and tried to remain strong, but as time passed she began to feel pangs of doubt.

Now, she sat hugging her legs to her chest, head resting upon her knees, a tired hopelessness in her once bright, blue eyes. _Will I ever see the sun again? My home? …Sokka?_ she thought to herself. Her solitude was broken, however, by the metallic creak of a door at the end of the hallway and the light that spilled forth into the cell block.

Suki took her head up from her knees and peered down the hall from between her bars; from the doorway emerged two of the "Green Robes", as she'd dubbed them. She then noticed the figure between them; the two men were half dragging half carrying someone.

The young warrioress watched as the "Green Robes" approached with their seemingly inert burden, they passed by her cell without even giving her a glance and stopped at the one next to hers. One man held the figure around the waist while the other produced a ring of keys and unlocked the cell's door.

Suki moved slowly across her cell to the bars that separated her space from the other cell and watched the "Green Robes" silently. The figure was roughly laid face down upon the cell's floor by the first man before her rejoined the other outside in the hallway.

The second man shut the door and relocked it, he then turned to Suki, "I hope you enjoy your new neighbor," he said, with a sarcastic tone and the two of them turned toward the cell block door and walked quietly away. The young woman watched them leave then turned her attention back to the person in the next cell, now clearly illuminated by the nearby wall torch.

Suki pulled back, away from the bars in shock, but her curiosity soon overcame caution and she inched back over. The "new neighbor" was none other than a rather slim looking Fire Nation soldier. He, yes, she was now sure it was a he, was laying face down, where the "Green Robes" had left him, but she could still make out some things.

His armor was very similar in appearance to that of the non-bending soldiers that had attacked Kyoshi Island when the Avatar had visited, but she could tell he was a bit smaller in stature than they had been. The unconscious, she was sure of this by the faint sound of his breathing, soldier lacked a helmet and she could see the thick black hair, put up in a top-knot, upon his head.

Suki pressed her face against the bars to get a better look; she noticed a strange lustrous object lying on the hard cell floor beside the soldier's neck, it was a delicate looking flame pendant made of gold or another precious metal. She could see it now, the just barely visible chain attached to the piece of jewelry, it was a necklace.

She continued her inspection feeling some contempt for the nameless, faceless soldier; he was, after all, Fire Nation. It was _his_ Princess who had killed her friends, _his _Princess who had locked her away in the prison. But despite the disgust she felt there was a strange curiosity too, just _why_ was he here? Beside her now, locked away just as she was.

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**A.N.: Well, there you have it, chapter three. I hope everyone enjoyed it; I admit it was a bit tough to write. For the fight scenes I got myself a broom and an old paper towel role and acted them out so I could better describe it. It was also rather difficult to write and think up the harsh conditions Suki has endured. Azula is quite a monster… Anyway, let me know what you think! Happy readers make me happy!**


	4. First Impressions

**A.N.: Thank you guys for the reviews! Here's Chapter Four, I hope it's as interesting as those that came before. **

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Chapter Four: First Impressions

Several times Zhi had drifted in and out of consciousness, he had caught a blurry glimpse of a hallway, the emotionless face of a Dai Li man, then a large iron door, but each time his vision had blurred and he'd slipped back into the infinite darkness.

When he finally began to awaken, the first sensation he felt was a strange, dusty and rather cold surface that seemed to be pressed against his face. The next was a throbbing pain in the back of his head, the young soldier remained still, he felt exhausted and even opening his eyes seemed like it would take too much effort.

He soon became uncomfortable and a new pain had made itself known in and around the joint of his right shoulder. With eyes still closed tightly, Zhi rolled himself over onto his back with his left arm and gingerly rested his right upon his chest.

The young soldier lay there breathing quietly, the events of that night in the Palace slowly rising to the surface. He began to wonder where he was, the Dai Li had taken him somewhere, he knew that much. Zhi took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes, the room was dark, but as his vision cleared he could discern a barred door before him and a torch on a wall beyond that.

He peered up at the ceiling above, it was low and dark and he figured he was being kept in some sort of a cell. With a few more deep breaths and considerable effort he managed to sit up and scoot backwards until his back rested against the cold iron wall at the rear of his cell.

After a short rest he took stock, his legs seemed alright, _nothing hurt there_, though, when he tried to stand he was overcome by dizziness and nausea and slumped back against the wall. Zhi carefully reached back and touched the spot at the back of his head where the throbbing pain originated from.

His fingers reached the swollen knot; the hair covering it was matted with dried blood. He thought back and could vaguely remember the Dai Li Agent landing near him, then he was sent sliding and tumbling, Zhi concluded that he must have struck some sort of hard object.

Had he suffered any sort of long term damage from the impact? He tried to remember basic information; _my name, date of birth, mother's eye color… mother, family, what will they think when they stop receiving letters? _

_The city? The Palace? What had happened? _He realized he was getting ahead of himself; he needed to stick with the here and now. Zhi next turned his attention to his arm, he let it rest in his lap but the pain was only slightly diminished, he made the decision to conduct an experiment and carefully lifted his arm up a bit.

The pain in the shoulder joint increased agonizingly and the young soldier drew a sharp breath, letting his arm rest once again. He'd never had a particularly high tolerance for pain.

Zhi's hand instantly rose in search of his flame pendant, for a split second fear washed over him, was the necklace gone? _No!_ His hand came to rest upon the pendant, the chain had become caught on the collar of his uniform and it had not dangled down like it normally did.

He held the pendant in his hand for a short moment, smiling to himself in the dark; his good luck charm had not left him. Zhi let it drop back around his neck and searched for his weapons, of course the Dai Li had taken his sword and Guan Dao but when he reached inside his boot, he realized they'd taken his knife too.

Suki had watched carefully from the neighboring cell, she remained silent and stayed back in the shadows observing the Fire Nation soldier. She'd kept a close eye upon him since the Dai Li had placed him in the cell, though she had eventually grown tired and moved to the far side of her cell to sleep.

She had awoken to a pained gasp from the soldier but had remained very still and she was certain he was not yet aware of her presence. Suki watched as he had searched for and found his necklace then checked for something beneath the right ankle guard of his armored boot, he'd frowned when his hand had returned empty.

Suki rose up from the ground onto her hands and knees, watching the occupant of the next cell carefully. The Fire Nation soldier turned his head and peered down the opposite line of cells, and then he slowly turned toward her end. For a fraction of a second blue eyes met gray, peering through the gloom. Suki froze and the soldier gave a surprised lurch.

Zhi blinked a few times, he hadn't sensed the presence of the other captive but he could see her now, his mouth hung open a bit and a curious look crossed his face as he inspected the girl. _What is she wearing..? What's all over her face? ...is that blood? _

The young soldier propped himself up and moved over, on his knees, to the bars that separated the two cells, right arm held up by his left. He stopped just inches from the bars. "Hel…" Zhi's voice came as a barely audible mumble and he cleared his throat before starting again, "Hello there, are uh.. did those Earthys capture you too?"

The girl only stared at him with her tired blue eyes. "I'm Polearmsman Zhi, of Sergeant Zhuk's Third Infantry Platoon.. we were Governor Yung's personal guard in the Palace… you're Fire Nation, aren't you?" he asked, trying to get some kind of a response from the girl.

"Are you hurt? Did the Dai Li harm you?" he asked her, speaking softly.

Suki moved slowly toward the bars that separated her from the Fire Nation boy, Zhi, as he called himself, she watched as a dumb looking smile crossed his face the closer she got. Her eyes lit upon the flame pendant, symbol of the Fire Nation, the same symbol that adorned Azula's top-knot.

Her friends, their lives taken by the Princess, taken by the Fire Nation, had not deserved such a terrible fate and Suki would get some revenge for them, here and now. She reached the bars, face to face with the enemy, and in a swift movement, swung at the boy.

Zhi saw a strange flicker in those blue eyes but had no way of anticipating what came next. With lightning speed the girl struck him directly in the nose with her fist. The young soldier had no time to shout and lurched backwards from the impact; he managed to get unsteadily to his feet and clutched his nose with his left hand.

Zhi whimpered as the blood dribbled into his hand and down his "mustache", he could taste its coppery flavor as it reached his lips. The young soldier steadied himself, he was still suffering from the dizziness, but the pain in his nose was enough to sharpen his senses.

"Uhhhhuug," groaned Zhi, "what.. what is wrong with you!?" he shouted, glaring at the girl, his hand still cupped over his nose.

Suki turned her back to the soldier and sat quietly, listening to him grumble in pain and confusion. Part of her felt satisfied, _anyone who wore that symbol deserved some pain, _she thought. But there was another part that felt slightly regretful, _he hadn't been aggressive or threatening, his questions were seemingly innocen_t.

Despite her confliction, Suki decided her best option was to remain silent, _even if that Fire Nation boy had meant well, it's too late now_, she thought, trying not to dwell on the issue.

Over in the next cell Zhi wiped the blood from his face, smearing it on the solid metal wall rather than upon his armor. Once his hand was mostly clean, he carefully felt of his nose and concluded that, at least, it wasn't broken.

He stared over into the other cell; the girl had turned her back to him. He considered yelling at her, a few creative clown-related insults came to mind as he remembered the makeup upon her face, but he held his tongue. Zhi was at a loss, _what did I do to upset her? Am I really that bad with girls?_

The young soldier snorted, which hurt his nose considerably, and sat back down on the cold iron floor, turning his back to the mystery girl. He made an effort to rationalize the events of that chaotic evening; he thought of Zhuk and the others and hoped that they had survived, though there was no one else in the cell block that Zhi could see.

His thoughts eventually drifted back to the angry girl with the made-up face in the other cell, he felt some resentment for the unprovoked strike but the mystery surrounding her was captivating and, try as he might, he could not shake his curiosity.

The hours passed slowly for the two captives, neither spoke and eventually they were given their morning "meals." Zhi was becoming rather hungry, he hadn't eaten since mid-day meal the day before and his thirst was getting to him as well.

When the Dai Li guard arrived he brought with him two small platters, each had a small cup of water, a stale chunk of bread and a clay bowl containing plain white rice. The trays were pushed through a six inch high space under the bars of each cell.

Zhi had glared and snatched his tray away as the guard pushed it under the bars. As the guard made his way back toward the door at the end of the cell block Zhi howled the national anthem of his nation as a show of defiance and strength, or at least, this is how the young soldier liked to think of it.

Suki ate slowly, the meals were always the same, the bread too hard, and not nearly enough water. She'd watched Zhi over her shoulder, looking back every now and then. She was sure he'd snuck a few looks over at her, just as she had done at him, though neither had caught the other.

She could see the bridge of the soldier's nose had turned a dark purplish color, bruising from her punch, and the satisfaction she had felt from striking him had faded. Through her observations Suki had noticed that Zhi was injured, he kept his right arm tucked against his side and rarely moved it.

The young warrioress was fairly certain that Zhi had dislocated his right shoulder; she'd seen the injury before, during accidents while training with her warrior group back home and had even learned to "reduce" or treat the dislocation. She had also noticed the large bump on the back of her neighbor's head; he'd either been hit with something or had fallen backwards onto something.

She came to the conclusion that he must be in considerable pain and had been rather startled when he began to sing _at_ the Dai Li guard.

Zhi had eaten swiftly, gulping down the water all at once then he had turned upon the bread and rice and finished off the rest of the meal. The young soldier turned the cup, bowl and tray over, examining them; he could find no way to use them as weapons or find any means to use them as escape tools.

The tray was too light, the bowl too brittle and the handless cup too small to do anything useful with. Once he had thoroughly looked over the meal items he set them aside and returned to his covert inspection of the mystery girl.

Zhi was reasonably certain that the girl had been imprisoned for some time; she seemed weakened and underfed, but that punch had been very strong and this deepened the mystery. As did the strange make up she wore, which he could find very little reason for.

_Why would a made-up girl be in this awful prison?_ _Though, I've never seen anyone wear that much makeup, _thought Zhi, taking another sneaky peek over at the girl. There was a mournful look about her; he figured she'd been someone important, or perhaps that was just his imagination trying to fill in the blanks.

She couldn't be from the Fire Nation, _not with those eyes_, he knew that much, though he still couldn't exactly place her nationality. Her skin, that was not covered by the makeup or the tattered brown robe, was fair, though it appeared in no way close to the near colorlessness of is own, there was a healthy hue to it.

He decided that she must be from some part of the Earth Kingdom, that seemed reasonable, but he was still no closer to discovering her reason for imprisonment. _What if she's a thief or a killer or something, that is possible, isn't it? _thought the young soldier, peering quickly over his injured shoulder.

_No_, he made up his mind that she wasn't some sort of cold blooded killer; she seemed too saddened, as if she'd lost something more than her freedom. Zhi was unfamiliar with the rules and codes that the Dai Li enforced but he had the feeling that they weren't a particularly fair judicial body.

On the other side of the bars, Suki had been thinking similarly. _If Azula's plan had worked and the city was hers, why would she have one of her own soldiers imprisoned? Maybe he committed some sort of a crime? Maybe he had refused orders. _

She stole a quick glance over at Zhi, he had just turned away from her, _so he is peeking, I thought so. Now… what if the Fire Nation failed and he's a prisoner of war? _Suki decided that this was a fair possibility as well. He seemed surprisingly human to her, contradictory to the common belief that the Fire Nation's soldiers were nothing more than extensions of the Fire Lord's will, as cold as the weapons they wielded.

Zhi shifted, finding a more comfortable seating position then leaned his left side against the wall. He would have missed his book if not for the constant desire to attempt to catch the mystery girl peeking at him. It was infuriating and interesting at the same time, the silent game they were both engaged in; trying to read the other, catch the other.

This went on for the better part of their day and eventually the evening meal was delivered, exchanged for the empty meal items from that morning. Zhi had called after the serving guard, employing a few colorful but derogatory terms used by Fire Nationals for Earthbenders.

Zhi felt that, by doing this, he was making a statement to the guard and his captors on the whole; he was not weakening due to imprisonment or injuries, though the pain was beginning to take its toll. After finishing his meal the young soldier had leaned back against his wall and made an effort to get a bit of sleep.

Suki to, had felt the need to rest, and despite her busy mind, had curled up on the floor of her cell, not far from the bars before drifting off to sleep.

For Zhi, sleep did not come easily. He managed to doze off, despite the three different sources of pain, but then he'd slid a bit to one side and his right arm had shifted, waking him back up. He sighed to himself and looked over at the sleeping mystery girl.

She seemed to shiver and curl tighter, the floor was cold and she wasn't dressed very well. The prison had always felt cold to Zhi, he'd spent most of his life in the tropical to semi-arid climates of his homeland where the temperature rarely went below seventy degrees.

But he had proper clothing, more than that; he wore a full uniform and armor. Watching the poor girl suffer the cold was unpleasant for the young soldier and the resentment he'd felt seemed to evaporate. He soon remembered his rain cloak, a long, red hooded cloak with a small flame emblem clasp at the collar bit. Most soldiers kept one folded up and placed it between the pad and the back plate of their armor for foul weather operations.

With only his left arm useable he managed to reach back and slip the folded cloak out from under his armor's back plate, he then placed it upon the ground and unfolded it. Getting it through the bars and over the mystery girl would present some problems though.

_What if she wakes up and thinks.. something.. and hits me again?_ thought Zhi, weighing the consequences. When the girl gave another noticeable shiver the young soldier made up his mind to try to cover her with the cloak, at least to some extent.

Zhi pulled the unfolded cloak through the bars into the girl's cell and then, very slowly, he moved the lifted hood end across the ground over the girl's feet. She rolled over in her sleep and the sudden movement startled Zhi, nearly causing him to drop the cloak.

He waited to be sure that she was asleep before carefully pulling the cloak over her, the collar part coming right up to her neck. Zhi sat back and watched, _success! _he could detect no more shivers. With his chivalrous, as he liked to think of it, goal completed the young soldier lay down on his back and tried again to fall asleep.

Hours later Suki had turned over once again, inching back onto the spot on the floor that had been warmed by her body. She reached over and tugged the cloak up to better cover herself, _I don't remember them giving me a blanket,_ she thought, still half asleep.

_They definitely never did.. _Suki forced herself awake and sat up slowly. She looked down upon the cloak that had now fallen down around her waist; carefully she picked it up and examined it. The long crimson cloak had easily covered her and as she turned it over her eyes lit upon the flame emblem clasp.

She instantly looked over through the bars at the sleeping soldier, _He did this? Why? After I hit him too… _Suki looked down upon the cloak she had clutched in her hands, as if searching the red fabric for some sort of message or explanation. After gazing at it for a short while she pulled it up and over her shoulders, clasping the fire emblem just below her collar.

It fit her well and she wrapped it around herself, the well-made fabric adding some protection against the cold air in the cell block. Suki turned her attention back toward Zhi; the soldier was still asleep, lying on his back with his feet sticking up into the air.

_Why? _she thought again, _What possible reason could he have to show me kindness, he is, after all, Fire Nation. _This reason though, the boy's nationality, was beginning to loose its significance to the young warrioress.

Suki thought back, remembering the snippy bureaucrat at Full Moon Ferry Landingand of course, the "Green Robes". _The Earth Kingdom has its cruel and unpleasant people amongst the greater majority of kind folks, so isn't it safe to assume that amongst all of the nasty Fire Nation citizens, there may be some good people?_

The captive Kyoshi islander resolved to try to speak with Zhi, once he had awoken, and perhaps, if possible, help him with his shoulder in return for giving her the cloak. Suki sat back, the cloak still tightly wrapped around her, and waited for the young soldier to stir.

**

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**

**A.N.: There you go! I'm hoping that was good enough. Here, I didn't want them to be friends or something right away, building trust in someone who is or was your enemy isn't, in my opinion, something that can happen in the span of a few hours of overnight. I'll be getting to work on chapter five shortly, so don't worry! **


	5. Understanding and Forgiveness

**A.N.: Thanks for the review! Here's Chapter Five! I just hope I haven't made a hypocrite out of myself with this chapter in relation to the Author's Note at the end of the last. **

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Chapter Five: Understanding and Forgiveness

Zhi slowly pushed aside the fog of sleep; something had a hold of his foot and was shaking it back and forth. "Mmm?" murmured the young soldier, opening is eyes and sitting up; Zhi was surprised to find that the hand wrapped around his boot belonged to the mystery girl.

"Oh.. can I.. help you?" he asked, a little unsure at first. The girl let go of his foot and sat down next to the bars, facing him. Zhi noticed that she was wearing the cloak that he'd covered her with the night before and he gave her a cautious smile.

Suki watched as Zhi rose to a seated position, "I want to thank you," she said, eyeing his injured shoulder, "for the cloak." The young soldier nodded and spoke, a touch of nervousness in his voice, "Ahh, it wasn't anything at all. I saw you shivering and such and… it is awfully cold in here and… you know; I've got my armor so I was warm enough…"

The mystery girl cut him off, "Your shoulder is hurt?" she asked, more a statement than a question. Zhi nodded once more, "Yes, I got… tossed into a table; I think it was a table anyway," he said, gently touching the area around the joint with his left hand.

"I think I can treat it for you if you come and sit with your back against the bars here," replied Suki, placing a hand on one of the bars separating their cells. Zhi didn't reply right away, he stopped to consider things, _She might just hit me again… nah, no, I don't think she'll do that. I don't even know what's wrong with my arm.. how could she know? She could be a nurse! _

Satisfied with his conclusion, Zhi moved over toward the bars, "So, are you a nurse or something?" The girl gave him an odd look, "No," she said flatly. The Fire Nation soldier turned around and sat with his back against the bars as he had been instructed to do.

"Oh.. uhm, I didn't know. I don't even know your name yet," replied Zhi, no longer so certain of just what the girl would do to his arm. Suki got a good grip on his right arm with her right and put her left arm through the bars and around his chest to keep him steady while she manipulated the joint back into its socket.

She could feel him wince as she brought his arm up, he was clearly making an effort not to shout or whimper as the pain increased. Suki was just one little movement away and… with a pop, the joint was reunited with the socket. Zhi sucked in air through his gritted teeth and relaxed.

The mystery girl released her hold upon him, "My name," she said, giving him a little pat on the shoulder, "is Suki."

Zhi slowly lifted his arm, the pain returned with slightly less intensity and he groaned a bit at the feeling. "You're going to need to rest that arm in a sling for a few days before the pain goes away," said the young warrioress, "do you have any rope or string with you?"

Zhi turned around to face Suki, sitting cross-legged in front of the bars, careful of his arm, "I think so… hold on," the young soldier removed the strap that normally held his sword, then he removed the coin pouch on his belt and it's connecting string.

"Will these do?" he asked, passing the string and strap though the bars to his neighbor. Suki took the items with a nod and tied them together, she then removed the hood portion from the cloak, which she discovered could be unlaced with a small red string weaved through the two pieces.

She instructed Zhi to sit back against the bars again then applied the improvised sling to his arm. The young soldier relaxed and let his arm rest, the sling worked perfectly, the pain reduced to a dull soreness.

Zhi turned back toward his neighbor, "Thank you very, very much, Miss Suki. I was certain it was broken or something," said the soldier bowing his head in respect.

"It wasn't any problem, I've seen dislocated shoulders before," replied the young warrioress.

There was a pause as the two sat there, facing each other, trying to decide what to say or ask next. Zhi had chosen one of many questions he hoped to ask but the girl spoke first, "Why did they lock you up in here, Zhi?" asked Suki, tilting her head to one side slightly.

Zhi thought for a moment, "Well, that's a rather long and confusing story. Let me see… well, I suppose it starts with the Princess, she managed to get into the city here, no one's really sure how she did it but she convinced the Dai Li to…" Suki raised a finger and the young soldier paused. She knew how the Princess had entered the city, and knew it was only a matter of time until she would have to tell Zhi.

_How is he going to react when I tell him his Princess is a murderer? Wait.. Dai Li? _Zhi was still waiting for her to speak before continuing his story, a curious look upon his face. "What, or who is the Dai Li?" asked Suki, finally breaking the silence.

"They're… well, sort of like a secret police," said Zhi, thinking back to his briefing, days before, "rather like the Ministry of National Security we have back in the Fire Nation. But I really don't know _that _much about them. They are or.. were lead by a fellow named Long Feng who effectively ran the city before Princess Azula managed to sway the Dai Li to join her cause. They're the ones keeping us here."

Suki nodded slowly, "I see." _So the Green Robes have a name and they sided with the Fire Nation! _The pieces were beginning to fall into place for the young warrioress; she knew now, how Azula had managed to gain power enough to have her imprisoned.

Zhi gave a nod and continued his story, describing the bloodless taking of the city, the occupation of the Palace and, what he believed to be, a countercoup that had potentially taken the lives of his comrades. "I'm not really certain, at this point, who controls the city, but I'm fairly certain it isn't my people."

The young soldier's story filled in many of the blanks and Suki's suspicions that Zhi was a prisoner of war had been confirmed. _Bloodless.. well that's good, at least. But if the city is no longer under Fire Nation control, why are they still holding me here? _she wondered to herself.

It was now Zhi's turn to ask a question, "May I ask you something?" Suki put her thoughts aside and nodded, "You may," she said, awaiting the question.

"Why did they lock you up in here? And.. why did you hit me…?" asked Zhi, carefully touching the bruised part of his nose. Suki gave her response some thought, _where to start?_

The captive Kyoshi islander described her warrior group to the young soldier, her mind wandering back to the pleasant training sessions with her friends and Sokka, conducted in the dojo back home. "You're a warrior? Really?" asked Zhi, quite visibly interested. He knew now, that, had they met anywhere else, it would have likely resulted in combat and he felt relived that such was not the case.

Suki smirked, realizing she had caught the soldier's interest, _We're not _so_ terribly different, both fight for a cause, both have lost friends and of course.. we're both locked up in here._ The young woman's smile faded, however, when she reached the portion in her story that involved the Fire Nation Princess.

Zhi listened intently as she spoke of the Avatar and his bison, _she knew the Avatar! It isn't everyday you meet someone who's met the greatest threat to your nation,_ thought Zhi, feeling a bit uneasy. Suki tried to choose her words wisely, she felt a bit uneasy herself, _when I tell him what the Princess did, he may get mad and not talk to me anymore. _The young warrioress had to admit having someone, anyone to talk to, had made imprisoned life a bit more bearable.

Suki began with the discovery of Appa and the encounter with the Princess and her friends, she watched as Zhi listened carefully, an unreadable expression of deep thought upon his face. _Even if he doesn't believe me.. I have proof, _thought the young warrioress, remembering the scar, burned across her left forearm, left there by one of Azula's blue bursts of flame.

She reached the part at which she and the other female warrior had been loaded into the back of the wagon under cover of darkness, Zhi still seemed lost in thought and this began to worry the warrioress.

For the young soldier, the news of his Princess, the honorable and cunning Azula, committing atrocities seemed unbelievable. Since enrollment in any form of school and even earlier in life it was drilled into the minds of the Fire Nation's children that the nobility was infallible and could commit no wrong.

_That can't be, she's lying, she _has_ to be, _though Zhi, but as he peered over into the eyes of the girl in the other cell he knew she couldn't be lying. The young soldier held his chin in one hand, eyes now staring down at the iron floor, a battle was raging in his mind; between what he'd been taught and what he knew.

"I can prove it to you," said Suki, the unpleasant pangs of uncertainty wearing away her resolve. _Maybe I shouldn't have told him. But… I had to tell him. _"I can prove it," she said again, pulling back the cloak and holding her scarred arm out, through the bars.

Zhi looked up from the floor, his eyes tracing up the girl's fingers to the ugly scar, his expression changed from one of deep thought to a look of shame and sadness. He reached slowly over and took Suki's hand in his, giving it a soft squeeze before letting his hand slip back into his lap.

"I'm sorry…" said Zhi, slowly, his tone matching the look upon his face, "I understand why you hit me now," he said, with a bit of a nod.

Suki sat quietly for a moment, a bit surprised by Zhi's taking of her hand. _He really feels sorry, truthful regret and compassion; this boy doesn't fit the Fire Nation stereotype at all, _she thought, peering down at her hand as she drew it back through the bars.

She looked up at Zhi, he sat there, waiting, hoping for forgiveness for being associated with the Princess. "I'm sorry to, I shouldn't have hit you," said Suki, trying to reassure the young soldier, "you aren't the Princess and you never harmed me or… my friends, you've been kind to me and I thank you for that."

Zhi gave her an impulsive grin, the blood surfacing in his cheeks giving some color to his pale face. The young soldier could feel it and covered his cheeks with his hands and looked away, over at the torch on the wall, embarrassed.

Suki covered her mouth with one hand, stifling a soft giggle, _Well, I know he's certainly happy to be forgiven, _she thought wryly.

The familiar creak of the cell block door echoed down to the two captives, their morning meal had arrived. They both watched as the serving guard sauntered down the hallway toward their cells, he was a short and rather ugly fellow and must not have been a particularly competent bender to be employed as a guard.

As before, once Zhi received his food, he assailed the guard with insults, hoping to get a response. The guard fumed but did not speak and simply clenched his fists and walked away.

Suki had said nothing in the guard's presence and was quietly eating when the cell block door was slammed shut. She turned to Zhi, who was trying to pull apart his chunk of bread, "Why do you yell and sing at him like that?" she asked, pointing down toward the cell block door.

"Easy," said Zhi, with a grin, "first, I don't want them to think I'm weakening or something and second I want to hear what that fellow's voice sounds like."

"You know, if you really make him mad, he may stop feeding you," replied Suki, giving the young soldier a knowing look. "Well," said Zhi, frowning a bit, "I… hope he doesn't, I mean, I don't really eat much, but still." "Also," said Suki, taking a sip from her cup of water, "why would you want to hear his voice?"

"Knowing what he sounds like may come in handy later on," replied Zhi, appraising his bowl of rice, as if it were a rare gem. Before Suki could question the boy further, he held the bowl through the bars, offering it to her, "Want this?" asked Zhi simply.

"You.. don't want it?" asked the young warrioress, giving Zhi a confused look. "Nah, like I said, I don't eat much," he said, shrugging one shoulder. Suki carefully took the bowl in both hands and set it down on her tray, "You don't have to do this, you know. I get enough to eat."

Zhi shrugged again, the grin from before crossing his face, "If you really want me to give you a reason," said the young soldier, his cheeks reddening, "think of it as a thank you for talking to me, I mean.. I'd have likely started singing to myself by now, in a few days I'd have probably gone crazy!"

Suki rolled her eyes, a smile spreading across her makeup smeared face, "If you say so," she said, scooping up some of the rice in her now-empty water cup. _If Sokka were here I'm sure he would have done the same thing, _as she ate, the young woman's thoughts drifted away from the prison.

Zhi, still hungry, but content, rapped his fingers rhythmically on his food tray. He watched as Suki ate and stared off into space, curious as to what the girl was so deep in thought over.

The warrioress once again became aware of her surroundings and sighed quietly, _daydreams can only take one so far_. She realized she'd left her neighbor in silence; he simply sat there tapping his fingers, making no attempt to interrupt her. Suki spied the golden flame pendant around Zhi's neck and this prompted her next question for the young soldier.

"Zhi," asked the young warrioress, eyeing the necklace, "do you have a loved one back in the Fire Nation?"

"Hmm, like family? I've got family, yes.. or did you mean…" said the young soldier, his voice trailing off. Suki nodded, "Like a girlfriend or something."

Zhi lightly bit his lip, thinking to himself, "Well, no… I mean, of course there were girls I _liked_ but I rarely said anything to them, you know? The ones I did actually talk to were polite, but usually refrained from speaking with me afterwards," said Zhi, shrugging.

"That was cruel of them, not to talk to you like that," said the young warrioress, matter-of-factly. "I suppose," replied Zhi, his eyes peering down at the ground, "but I understand how they felt, I mean, I'm not exactly a spectacular physical specimen," said the young soldier, forcing a chuckle.

Suki shrugged helplessly, "I saw your necklace there, I just thought it might have been a gift from someone special to you," said the girl, pointing at the flame pendant necklace. _Poor guy doesn't seem to have very high self-esteem_, she thought to herself.

Zhi's eyes instantly lit up and he gave Suki a wide smile, "This," said the soldier, holding the pendant in his left hand, "is my good luck charm; it wasn't a gift, but a _reward!_ Would you like to hear how I got? It's a good story."

The young warrioress smiled at her neighbor, his enthusiasm and quick attitude change was rather reassuring after seeing how down he had become discussing matters of love and the like. "I would, how did you get it, Zhi?" asked Suki, scooting a bit closer to the bars separating the two captives.

Zhi rubbed his hands together excitedly; he loved to tell _The Story, _on top of that, hearing the warrioress say his name was pleasing to the young soldier, it made him feel like she was beginning to trust him and this only made him smile more.

"Well," Zhi began, exuding an air of pride, "this story takes place when I was about… twelve, yep, I was twelve at the time. You see, I lived within walking distance of my IntermediarySchool back home in Zhujing, which is in the Shu province, and every afternoon after school I'd walk home."

Suki gave Zhi a nod and he continued, "Zhujing is a costal city, there's big shipyard there, that's where my mother works.. but that's beside the point. See, Zhujing is the provincial capital and the largest city in the Shu province, it's where Governor Quae and his wife Lady Yàn have their palace."

Zhi took a few breaths and compiled his thoughts; it had been some time since he had last told _The Story, _"When I would walk home, I'd go through a fairly large marketplace, lots of street vendors, you know? Anyway, while I was passing through I went by a pretty reputable import shop. You'd never guess whose carriage was out front!"

"Who did it belong to?" asked Suki, becoming curious. "Why, none other than Lady Yàn! See, in the Fire Nation, our nobility is very highly regarded, you're lucky if you get even a glimpse of a Governor or his wife. So I was passing by with my books and such tucked under my arm when I saw her, of course, everyone else did too and a crowd formed right there in front of the shop."

"So how did you get the necklace? Was it hers?" asked the warrioress, peering briefly at the pendant. "Mmm, just wait and see. Anyway, as she was leaving she had to thread her way through the crowd; I managed to squeeze in through the crowd myself, to get a better view. Well, when I got just close enough to see her I noticed something laying on the ground in her wake. It was this necklace!" said the young soldier, changing his seated position.

"Sounds like you found it; you said it was a reward, right?" asked Suki, tilting her head to the side slightly. "Oh, yes I found it," said the young soldier, "but I wouldn't have dreamt of keeping it. I shouted for Lady Yàn to wait but she just waved to the crowd, smiled and climbed into her carriage and was off!"

"I just dropped my books right there in front of that shop and ran after her, I mean.. it was my duty as a citizen of the Fire Nation to at least _try_ to return it. I suppose I'm a pretty good runner because I did manage to catch up with that carriage… had to run around some vendors though.. wasn't easy. Once I caught up I shouted to her and lucky thing, she had the carriage come to a stop to see what I wanted."

"Well, the first thing I did was stand at attention, just like I'd seen the soldiers do, and then I held out the necklace and told her that she must've dropped it. She took it, looked it over and gave me a pat on the head, said that it _was_ hers and that I'd done a very honorable thing in returning it. She was so pleased that she offered to give it to me as a reward!"

"My, so that's how you got it? A reward from a noblewoman," said Suki, a bit surprised, "we haven't got any nobles on KyoshiIsland, we do have elders though. I can understand why you care so much about it."

Zhi nodded and smiled, "Yep! It's quite a reward, Lady Yàn said she hoped it would bring me luck, she also suggested that I give it to a girl I liked… it is sort of a woman's necklace after all," said the young soldier, inspecting the pendant in his hand, a funny look on his face.

"It _is_ lucky though! I've made it through several major battles without so much as a scratch," said the young soldier, proudly. "Hmm… what happened to your books though?" asked Suki, raising an eyebrow.

"Books?" replied Zhi, "Oh! My books… yeah… I sort of lost those. I went right back after talking with Lady Yàn but they were gone," said the soldier, looking rather embarrassed. The young warrioress laughed softly, one of the very few times she'd had anything to laugh about since the encounter with the Princess.

Zhi rolled his eyes and shrugged, "I was able to get new ones… Oh, now I think it's only fair if I ask you something," said the soldier pointing at the girl in the next cell. "Oh? What's that?" asked the warrioress, placing her hands on her hips and cocking her head to one side.

"Have _you_ got a loved one back on KyoshiIsland?" asked the soldier, folding his arms over his chest, awaiting a reply. "He…" Suki paused as memories from her first meeting with Sokka and their reunion at Full Moon Ferry Landing came flooding back. She opened her mouth to speak but the memories became slowly tainted with doubt.

The young soldier on the other side of the bars became quickly aware of his neighbor's apprehension, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to," he said, softly.

Suki shook her head and found her voice, "No, I'll answer the question," she said sternly, "There is a boy, I've only gotten to see him for a short time, twice… its been a long time and… I'm not even so sure anymore."

The young warrioress shook her head slowly, sighed and peered down at the black iron floor, _what if Sokka's forgotten about me? It's been so long… _

"If he's forgotten about you," said Zhi in an almost cold tone, "he's a fool." Suki immediately looked up at the Fire Nation soldier; he simply sat there quietly, a rather surprised look upon his face, as if he'd not expected to speak aloud his own comment.

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**A.N.: And there you have it, Chapter Five! I really liked writing a lot of this chapter; I just hope it fits together with the previous one. I'm a bit worried that I didn't do so well on this one, for a few reasons. Anyways, please tell me what you think! I should be getting started on Six shortly. **

**Edits: Thanks again to PetertheChameleon! He's convinced me to make some changes, as you probably noticed I had Suki make Zhi a sling for his arm, which is _far _more accurate, before I left this out. More changes me be made to this chapter, not sure yet. **


	6. Plans and Trust

**A.N.: Wellp, here's Chapter six! I'm proud to announce that PetertheChameleon, a long-time reviewer of this story has agreed to Beta read for me! That means chapters from now on will likely be easier to read, Grammatically Pristine, and just all around better. I'd like to thank him for the hard work he put into this chapter and for future ones as well!**

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Chapter Six: Plans and Trust

The third night in the prison for Zhi and the first night for Suki, with someone to talk to, had passed slowly. During the day both captives had told each other stories of their escapades; Suki told Zhi of the many interesting and sometimes frightening encounters she'd had with different refugees at the Ferry landing. Zhi related tales of different battles he'd participated in, from fierce house-to-house urban warfare to quietly trying to flank the enemy in a dense forest at night.

Eventually the serving guard returned. Despite the young soldier's best efforts, he was unable to get the guard to speak. 

As soon as the guard had left, Suki made it clear that she would accept no more food for the day, from her neighbor, based on the claim that if he starved then she'd have no one to talk to. Zhi sighed dramatically and emphasized Suki's use of the phrase "for the day." 

After eating they decided that it was getting late and wished each other a good night. Suki curled up under the cloak and Zhi lay on his back as before, his left hand beneath the back of his head to keep the bump, from his impact with the statue, from hitting the floor. 

Both captives looked forward to the morning so that they might learn more about the other, and because of this, the night seemed to drag on. But once they had both fallen asleep, the morning arrived shortly. 

Before she drifted off, Suki had thought back to Zhi's outburst. He'd, albeit indirectly, insulted Sokka, _sort of_, the young woman thought. She found it difficult deciding just how to react to what he'd said. _Do I agree with him? How did he even… why did he say that? I may have just met him, but… he doesn't, or didn't, seem like one who would be so… abrupt._

_Sokka's no fool_. _He still… he still cares about me… right?_ Suki pushed the thoughts from her mind, pulled the cloak tighter around herself and closed her eyes; she was soon asleep. 

On the other side of the bars Zhi had tried to sleep, but his mind kept going over everything that had happened that day. He thought about his family, as well. _How long until word gets back home and they send my family that K.I.A. letter everyone fears? They'll be devastated…._

Zhi tried to think of other things, as imagining his family mourning him was not pleasant in the least. He soon remembered his "comment" from earlier that day. _Why did I say that? That was rude… I shouldn't have said that. Well… maybe. That guy would haffta be a fool. She _is_ really interesting and…_

The young soldier grunted and shut his eyes, trying to imagine a blank white wall to silence his thoughts. Within the hour, he, too, was asleep.

The next thing Zhi was aware of, as he awoke, was the familiar hand shaking his right foot. The Fire Nation soldier smiled, opened his eyes, and sat up to face his neighbor. "Good morning Miss Suki." 

"Didn't want you to sleep all day and miss your chance to yell at the guard… and what's all this 'Miss Suki' business?" she asked, furrowing her brow. 

"Oh, I dunno… just trying to be polite," said Zhi with a shrug. "Thank you for waking me. I wouldn't want to miss out on hearing that Earthy's voice." 

"You still haven't given me a very good expla…" Suki was cut off by the creak of the cell block door. They both turned in unison and looked toward the source of the sound; there was the guard, trudging up the cell block, their food in his hands. 

As the guard got closer they could make out a scowl upon his face. Suki quickly looked over to Zhi. He was grinning menacingly at the approaching guard. The guard grimaced as he caught sight of Zhi sitting at the ready, in front of the tray slot. He delivered Suki's food, shoving it indifferently through the slot with his foot before carefully approaching the cell occupied by the young soldier. 

Zhi leapt to his feet, eyeing the guard with contempt. "There you are, Earthy! It's about time you showed up," he said, venomously. 

With a quick motion the guard bent down and shoved Zhi's tray through the slot. He stood back up and gave the young Polearmsman a cold stare; the two were nearly the same height with Zhi only a bit shorter. 

"Don't you dare say a word, Fire Scum. Or so help me, I'll dump your food on the ground from now on!" spat the guard, snarling at him. 

Zhi bowed, stepping back from the bars, and, in a sarcastic tone, said, "As you wish, honorable Dai Li man."

Suki watched the guard threaten Zhi. It was barely noticeable but she could see him turn his head slightly and give her a sly smile as he bowed. The guard nodded a bit, his face still scrunched up in a scowl. He then turned and briskly walked away, slamming the iron door behind him, as always. 

Zhi stood before the bars for a short while. "Don't you dare say a word, Fire Scum. Or so help me, I'll dump your food on the ground from now on!" he said, mimicking the guards voice; a quite accurate imitation. 

"You wanted to learn to mimic him?" asked Suki. 

"Yep," He had a satisfied look, "that is exactly what I wanted to do." Zhi sat down and placed his tray on the floor in front of him. However, he didn't look down at the food; instead, he looked right into his neighbor's eyes.

"Miss Suki, how would you like to get out of this prison?" he asked with a grin. 

"What do you think?" replied the young warrioress, giving him a funny look. 

"I mean it! I think I've got an idea. I mean… part of one, anyway. What do you say?" 

"Well, of course I want to get out of here!" she said, raising her voice a bit. "I'm just not… sure." 

The young soldier in the other cell gave her a curious look. "_I'm_ not sure I understand what you mean, Miss Suki." 

She hesitated before speaking. "Well… you said you only had part of the plan. What about the rest of it? And what happens once we get out?"

Zhi seemed taken aback by her rapid questions and tone. _What if this is a trick? _She thought,_ That's possible._ _He could just be trying to use me to escape and after we're out… then what? He lets the Dai Li know where I am and then runs off? No. Would he do that? No… he's been more than kind to me… maybe too kind._

"I… I'll come up with the rest, and after we're out we could… escape into the city, of course, then…" said Zhi, in a less than confident tone. 

"Then what? You don't know, do you? Or maybe you do." snapped Suki, tugging the cloak tightly around herself. 

Zhi sat and looked over at her, with a mixture of confusion and defeat. "What did I do? You don't think I can come up with something? You… don't trust me any?" asked the young soldier, trying to make sense of his neighbor's reaction. 

Suki gave a small sigh. "Zhi… how long have I known you?" she asked with a softer tone. 

"Two days, but…" replied Zhi, his voice trailing off. 

She gave him a slow nod. _I shouldn't take any chances, even if that means hurting his feelings._

"I understand," said Zhi, dejectedly. The Fire Nation boy sat cross-legged, his back bent over and rested his chin in his left hand, left elbow resting on the ground. Suki could clearly see how her words had affected him. She had known what would happen, but that didn't make it any easier.

She tried to think of something to say, but he'd turned to face the torch on the wall outside his cell. The young warrioress shook her head slowly. _Was that the right thing to do? I don't know. If he was really going to… trick me, would he look that upset?_

Zhi sighed to himself. He'd thought that she was beginning to trust him; he'd believed things were working out. _Just yesterday, things were so… nice. Why… what did I do wrong? I mean… I guess she's right, two days isn't that long. I just wish…_ he shut his eyes for a moment, lost in thought. 

The hours passed slowly for the two prisoners; it seemed as if the silence and tension of the first day had returned to haunt them. Suki gave her neighbor a quick look. He was still sitting there, his large gray eyes peering out beyond the bars of his cell, seemingly beyond the iron wall.

_Should I trust him? If we work together_ _we might actually be able to get away. I could get out of here, out of the city, maybe… I could track down Sokka_, she thought, weighing the consequences. _I know he wants me to trust him, that's clear and obvious. I have yet to feel_ _that he's lying, but… a trick is still possible, right?_

Zhi tried desperately to put his thoughts elsewhere. The disappointment he felt, just when things seemed to have been going so well, was disheartening. Eventually a strange little memory from months before crept into his mind, softening the feelings that plagued him. 

Suki was still stewing in her conflicted feelings when the humming caught her attention. She turned slowly to face the source of the sound. The humming was coming from her neighbor; she could just barely make out the tune. _He's humming some little song? _

"Something… hmmmm… secret tunnel, secret tunnel…" Zhi half-hummed, half-sung the repetitive tune.

"Zhi?" asked the young warrioress, softly. "Zhi?" she said again raising her voice. He finally heard her and turned his head, looking over his shoulder. 

"Mmhm?" he replied. His gray eyes still seemed to posses a mournful quality. 

"What're you singing?" Suki asked, trying to reinitiate their conversations from before. 

"Oh," said Zhi, thinking a moment, "well… it's just part of some silly song. All I remember is the chorus." He sounded uninterested.

_Doesn't seem like he really wants to talk to me,_ thought Suki, frowning a bit, _I suppose he has a right to feel that way, though_. She decided to try another approach with her neighbor. "Zhi, please tell me where you heard that song. I'd like to hear a story," she said, trying to entice the boy. She knew by now how much he enjoyed telling tales. 

"You really want to hear about it? It's nothing special," said Zhi, turning slowly to face Suki. 

"I asked, didn't I?" she replied. 

"Okay," said the young soldier, lacking enthusiasm. "It was a couple of months before we were sent here to Ba Sing Se. We were in a small town on the Hu River, that's southwest of here." Suki nodded, urging Zhi to continue with his story. 

"Anyway… I was with two other soldiers from my unit on a patrol through the town's eastern marketplace. We passed this group of…" he paused, trying to come up with the right words, "I guess you could call them nomads. There were… five of them." 

"Were they musicians? Or street performers?" asked the young warrioress, with an interested look. 

Zhi paused for a moment, thinking. "They were… hmm, that's tough. They weren't really performing for anyone in particular. They were just sort of… _there_." 

"Anyhow, their leader, if they were even led… yeah, I think he was the leader, he had one of those pipa string instruments, and he'd play and sing and the other nomads would dance or… I think one had a drum but I can't remember," said Zhi, relating his tale in a slightly more lively tone. 

"Oh, I see. So you picked the song up from them, huh?" asked the girl, nodding him on. 

"Yup," replied Zhi, returning the nod. "They sure were an odd bunch, gave us all flowered leis… I think I've still got mine… put it between the pages of one of my books. You know, flatten out the flowers until they dry out and such?" 

"I don't think I've ever done that, to be honest," replied Suki, giving her neighbor a curious look. 

Zhi shrugged a bit. "I have this bad habit of keeping things and not getting rid of them. For the longest time I kept this little flute that I'd found in a bombed out building."

The young soldier went on to describe the flute and how he'd eventually given it to a scruffy looking Earth Kingdom boy; a refugee who'd been moving with his family farther north. Suki had to smile at him. _Looks like I've got the old talkative Zhi back. _

Eventually the conversation drifted back to the nomads from before and Zhi had told her how they had asked about his uniform, wondering if it was uncomfortable to wear. He'd told them no and tried to explain how well made the uniforms and armor were, but they had insisted that it limited one's individuality, likening the situation to a small bird trapped in a cage that longed to fly freely. 

Zhi explained how he'd eventually given up and bidden them farewell before continuing on with his fellow soldiers. Suki knew the feeling; she'd had her fair share of encounters with odd people, too, since leaving her home. 

The young soldier soon thought of something to ask. "Could you tell me about your home, Miss Suki? I know you said you lived on an island but I'm interested in hearing more if you're willing to tell me." 

"I suppose I could describe it some for you, if you like," replied Suki, changing her seated position to be more comfortable. 

"I certainly would like that," he said, and before she knew it, Zhi was sitting right by the bars waiting for her to share with him tales of her home island. 

She explained how the island was created and how it earned its name. She described the climate, the people and their town. Zhi seemed fascinated, especially when Suki mentioned the regular snow that the island received. Zhi had never seen snow, at least not close up, and he'd pressed the young warrioress with questions regarding the alien atmospheric phenomenon. 

Suki went on to explain the island's major export, the Elephant Koi, as well as the fish's natural predator, the Unagi. He had never seen an eel-like sea monster before but he was more than willing to share with Suki tales of large carnivorous whales that lived off the coast of his home city back in the Fire Nation. 

The captives' conversation had shifted away from sea monsters and back to Kyoshi Island. Suki described the island's natural beauty, her eyes taking on a quality of longing as she spoke of her home. Zhi had stated that he hoped to see the island someday, then quickly added that he meant a peaceful visit.

Eventually, Zhi remembered their previous conversation. "I'm curious," he said, leaning forward a bit. "Why did you ask about that song? Just trying to get me talking again or something?" 

"I… wanted to know, really. I think I may have heard that song somewhere myself, once," Suki said, folding her arms over her chest. _I also didn't want him to feel so down,_ she thought to herself.

Zhi smirked and sat back. "Okay, just wondering." There was a pause before Zhi spoke again, softly. "Miss Suki, I understand if you don't trust me, considering my nationality, you probably shouldn't. But… I doubt either of us are going to escape this place without the help of the other. Besides if I got out, I'd let you out too," he said, matter-of-factly. 

Suki sighed softly. "I never said that. It's just… well, you can't exactly go about escaping with your arm in that sling," she said, pointing at Zhi's arm. "You'll need to wait a few more days until that heals." Her words were followed by yet another pause and she could see that the young soldier in the next cell was deep in thought. 

"You know… that is a really, really good point," replied Zhi, seemingly pleased to be defeated. Suki sat back, rather relieved that another tense moment had been avoided. "Miss Suki, there's something I'd like to do right now. Could you please come a bit closer and bow your head in front of the bars here?" asked the young soldier before scooting over to the bars that separated their cells. 

"Why? What are you going to do?" she asked, a bit worried at his request. 

"You'll have to wait and see, but I promise I won't harm you… I just want to show you that I trust you," he said, with certainty.

"I don't know…" replied Suki, becoming noticeably nervous. 

"Please? Have I ever done anything to harm you?" 

"Well… no," she said, still uncertain. 

"Come on over here," said Zhi, making a motion with his head, beckoning her over. "I swear I won't harm you. I wouldn't dream of it." Suki reluctantly made her way over to the bars and bowed her head as Zhi had asked. 

If she looked up, she could still see most of the young soldier in front of her, but she was only able to see up to his arm in its sling. What exactly he was doing she could not say. The next thing she knew, something had been looped over her head and around her neck. 

She jerked backwards and away from the bars, soon out of his range. When she looked up at him, he seemed just as surprised by her action as she'd been of his. Suki soon became aware that the object was still around her neck and immediately raised her hand to discover what it was. 

She took hold of the thin golden chain and followed it down. "Your… necklace?" she said, peering down at the flame pendant she now held in her hand. Suki looked up from the pendant and over at her neighbor, a bit shocked. 

Zhi was smiling nervously. "I can't think of any better way to tell you that I trust you than to let you hold onto the most valuable possession I own, at least until we get out of here and such…" said the Fire Nation soldier sheepishly. 

"I… well, are you sure you want to do this?" asked Suki, the pendant still clasped in her hand. 

Zhi gave her a nod. "I'm absolutely sure. I know you'll keep it safe… won't you?" he asked, still seeming a bit nervous. 

She ran her thumb over the golden flame-shaped piece of jewelry; the pendant seemed warm to the touch. Whether this was due to hanging around her neighbor's neck or caused by some strange Fire Nation heat source, Suki could not say. 

"Of course, Zhi. I won't let anything happen to your necklace. I appreciate that you feel it's safe with me," she said, in a reassuring tone. She watched as Zhi sat back and relaxed a bit, a smile upon his face. _I can't say I exactly like wearing this thing… but I understand what he's trying to express. He's odd, but he's nice too. _

"Hey Zhi?" asked Suki. "Do you really think we can get out of here?" 

The Fire Nation soldier did not hesitate to answer. "I know we can." 

"You mean, once you've got the rest of your plan worked out, yeah?" she asked with a smirk. 

Zhi chuckled softly. "Yeah, once it's all worked out," he said with a grin, the faint color rising in his cheeks. 

* * *

**A.N.: I hope, as always, everyone who read this chapter enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think. **

**Chapter Seven in nearing completion though I'm having a tid bit of trouble with it so I can't give an exact date that it will be up. **


	7. Family Memories and a Crude Plan

**A.N.: Here, I may be pushing the limits of Fire Nation Technology, but it may come in handy later. The largest point being Electricity. I looked carefully at some screenshots of the inside of Fire Nation ships and the lighting looks like it's either electrical or some sort of gas flame, I'm assuming it's electrical. My rule of thumb is sort of if we had it before 1890, then the Fire nation **_**Might**_** have it. **

**Another point, since we don't really know anything about Suki's Mother or Father I'm going to kind of create that part of her past, just filling in the blanks. If they ever do tell about her parents in the show I can always come back and rewrite**

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Chapter Seven: Family Memories and a Crude Plan

Over the course of two days, Suki and Zhi spoke often. Their conversations greatly helped pass the time and allowed the two to better get to know each other.

At one point, the young soldier asked his neighbor about her friends. It was a touchy subject and Suki felt strange discussing her late friends with Zhi. He was polite and let her know that she could change the subject at anytime if it became too difficult to think about. Despite the sadness related with thinking about her friends, Suki described them to him. She told of their friendship and their bravery when facing the Princess.

Zhi listened, saddened himself. Suki's lost friends were not so different from the friends he'd had in Zhuk's Platoon. He gave her his condolences and admitted that he would have liked to meet her friends, as they sounded like admirable people.

Suki eventually asked about Zhi's friends. She was curious as to what had become of them. The young soldier retold, in greater detail, the tale of the chaos that had unfolded the night he was first brought to the prison. He spoke of Ning and Corporal Huế and how they'd come to count on each other. Zhi also spoke of Sergeant Zhuk, and how he'd looked up to the gruff Firebender as well as others from the unit.

Zhi was solemnly confident that his friends were all dead. Suki tried to reassure him but he pointed out that there were no other Fire Nation prisoners in their cell block; no other prisoners at all, for that matter. She suggested the possibility that they might have been taken elsewhere, and Zhi had told her he hoped she was correct, though he didn't truly believe that any had survived.

He'd barely survived the Dai Li's ambush himself; he'd stood there, amongst the rubble, and listened to the dead silence that had fallen over the conference room. Zhi tried hard to hide his doubt; hope wasn't something he wanted to argue about, even if Miss Suki was trying to make him feel better.

Eventually the serving guard made his regular appearance and delivered breakfast to the prisoners. Zhi no longer yelled at the man; he'd heard his voice enough for the purpose he'd had in mind and now just sat and waited for his food, occasionally grinning malevolently at the guard.

The two captives settled down and ate their meager meals, chatting every now and then. When they were both near finishing their food, Suki spoke up. "Zhi?" The young soldier looked up from his food, giving her his attention.

"I'm curious to know about you family. I know you've mentioned them, but you haven't really told me that much," she said, finishing the last bite of her stale bread.

"Oh, I could tell you about them if you like, mom, dad, my sister, certainly," replied Zhi as he set aside his empty tray.

In response, Suki raised an eyebrow, "You said your mother worked at a shipyard, didn't you?"

"Yup!" replied Zhi, proudly, "My mother, Li, works at the Jingong Naval Shipyards back home in Zhujing."

"She works on the warships? What dose she do?" asked Suki. She'd always heard that the Fire Nation relegated most of its women to the role of homemakers.

Zhi grinned. "She does electrical and ducting work. She's a tradeswoman."

"What exactly dose that mean?" asked Suki, having never heard either of the terms before.

"Well, ducting's like… the pipes and vents that bring air throughout the ship so people deep down in the hull can have fresh air. Other pipes carry steam to different parts of the ship to work mechanisms and such," said Zhi, trying to remember how his mother had explained her work to him.

"Oh, I see," said Suki, nodding. "But what's electrical?"

Zhi paused, thinking of the best way to explain something he himself knew little about. "Well, you've seen thunderstorms, right? Thunderbolts?"

"Of course. We get thunderstorms on Kyoshi in late summer all the time," replied the young warrioress.

"Those thunderbolts are electricity. See, a steam engine coupled with this thing called a generator can make electricity like that… not as powerful, but enough to power these neat glass bulb lights, among other things," said Zhi, referring back to what he'd been taught in a secondary school general sciences class.

Suki sat quietly for a few moments; she'd never heard of such a thing. "Does everyone in the Fire Nation use those bulb things and the electricity?"

Zhi gave a bit of a chuckle. "Well… no, it's kind of expensive and you need to have big steam engines to use the generators. It works great on the ships since they all have steam turbines, but back home, only a few cities have electrical systems and they're just for street lamps. Normal folks just use candle and firelight."

"Huh," muttered Suki, "Does your mother enjoy doing that sort of work?"

"Oh yes," said Zhi, switching the subject, "my mother's always wanted to work and my father's always supported her. See, since the war began, men go off to fight and women are able to get all kinds've good jobs that they would have been forbidden from before Sozin became Firelord." The young soldier grinned. But then he scratched his head, adding,"Of course… there _are_ women who go off to fight too."

Suki was becoming more and more interested; the homeland of the enemy and its citizens were an enigma to most of the world. "What about your sister?"

"Oh! Zhen," said Zhi, "my little sister.. well, not that little. She just turned fifteen a few months ago. She's just as tall as I am too. See, I take after my mother, short and slim, gray eyes. My sister takes after my father, stocky and… well, also pretty short," There was a 'longing for home' look in his eyes.

Suki gave her neighbor a smirk. "So what's she like?"

Smiling, Zhi tried to think of the best way to describe his sister. "Well, she's a Firebender. Only one in my immediate family and quite talented too. She's actually attending a special bending academy right now, and after that, I think she plans to transfer directly to active duty with the army."

"She isn't… crazy or violent or something, is she? You just said she's a Firebender..." said Suki, a bit hesitant.

Zhi shook his head. "No, not at all! She's very sweet. A bit overbearing at times, maybe a little overly physical, too… she can hug the breath out of you," said the young soldier, chuckling. "She wrote me letters all the time, wonder how she's doing now…"

"You two must have been close," said Suki, peering over at her neighbor, from whom she received a nod of acknowledgement. "I guess the other Kyoshi warriors were like sisters to me…" Her eyes sank to stare at the floor of her cell.

"Do… you want to tell me about your family?" Zhi asked, in a soft tone. "I'm always interested in listening to anything you want to tell me."

Suki remained silent for a short while, thinking, _I've never talked about my parents to anyone from outside of Kyoshi… not even Sokka. _

"You haven't told me about your father yet, Zhi," she said, looking back up at the young soldier.

"Right, my father," said Zhi, nodding slowly. "His name's Cheng. He's older than my mother… he was going to enlist in the army like my uncle did, but his eyes were bad so they couldn't accept him."

"How does he treat you?" asked the young warrioress, having never known her own father.

"Oh, just fine. He sets very high standards, though. He was very proud when I told him I was joining the Future Soldiers program in secondary school, and then when I was officially inducted into the Army, that was when he gave me my knife," said Zhi, remembering the small weapon. Where it was now, he had no idea.

"Knife?" asked Suki, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep, he gave me this little knife. I think the Dai Li took it from me when I was unconscious," he said with a sigh. "My father, though... sometimes I think he's trying to live out the life he'd hoped for himself through Zhen and I." Suki nodded, as she felt she understood.

"Not that that's a bad thing," he added, with confidence, "I mean, I wanted to join up. He didn't pressure me or anything,"

"Does he work at the Shipyards? Or someplace else?" asked Suki.

Zhi shook his head. "Not at the Shipyards. My father is a plant manager for a factory that makes armored boots. He told me that back before the war the company supposedly made women's shoes!"

"Really?" she was dubious.

Zhi gave her a grin. "Really, and you know what's even better? These boots," said the young soldier, pointing down at his feet, "were made in the factory that my father works at. When I was issued these, I ran the serial number against the company records and there they were; Standard Infantry Set Size Two… they were easy to find on the list since they don't get orders for Size Twos very often."

Suki smirked. "I can tell you're not making it up; you do have tiny feet."

Zhi shrugged. "Everyone in the Fire Nation has small feet compared to... I dunno, Earth Kingdom folks. I mean, they've got _big_ feet. Ours are normal."

Suki giggled softly. _When he makes that peaceful visit to Kyoshi Island he'll have to see Avatar Kyoshi's boots. _

Zhi eventually spoke up, cocking his head to the side like a curious dog. "Hey now, aren't you going to tell me about your family?"

Suki turned her gaze away from her neighbor. "I guess… I could. If you really want to hear about them," she said, silently hoping that he wouldn't press the issue.

"If you'd like to tell me, I'd like to hear. I'd be willing to bet that they were great people," Zhi said, smiling in encouragement.

"Alright, alright," Suki said, at last. "I never knew my father. Oyajii and my mother told me things about him, though." Zhi could remember from the day before when Miss Suki had mentioned the leader of her island's village.

"What did they tell you?" Zhi asked. He could tell she wasn't exactly excited about discussing her family with him and he began to feel a bit guilty.

"Well, he was from the Southern Water Tribe, but he told my mother that things weren't going well for him there, so he decided to travel the world… He stopped on Kyoshi Island on his way north and that's where they met," said Suki.

"They fell in love and got married?" asked Zhi, strongly hoping it wasn't due to the Fire Nation that Miss Suki had never met her father.

"My mother fell in love with him…" said the young warrioress, her tone changing to one of contempt, "but I don't think he really loved her. He told her he did; he told her many things… then, after staying on the island for a few months he quietly slipped away into the night and never returned."

"Ahh… I see. I'm sorry," said Zhi, cringing a bit.

"It's not your fault," said Suki, giving him an odd look. "My father… they never told me what he looked like, though. I suppose the only thing he gave me was my blue eyes. And that's… really all I know about him. Really all I care to know, to be honest with you," she said, a scowl on her face.

"So he took advantage of your mother and the village?" asked Zhi, cautiously.

"That's exactly what he did!" Suki said. "Now, don't get me wrong, I don't think everyone from the Water Tribes are like that… he was just a rotten one… there are some really great people from the Water Tribes." Her thoughts drifted.

"Well, what about your mother. Was she okay? She would be… blessed with a wonderful daughter, no?" asked Zhi, a nervous grin spreading across his face.

Suki gave him another odd look that slowly turned into a shy smile. "I suppose… well, she was devastated when he left… but I was born some months later and I think she stopped thinking about him as much."

Zhi smiled, hoping she would continue.

"She loved me, very much. Eventually I started asking about my father, but we had no trouble without him. Mother grew a garden and we had enough to eat and some to sell as well," said Suki, remembering the six short years she'd spent with her mother.

"Loved you? Don't you mean… loves you?" asked Zhi, his feelings of guilt returning.

"Well… I was too young to really understand what was going on at the time, but I'm told she became very ill and when I was just six years old. I… came home from playing with some of the other girls. Oyajii stopped me in front of my home and told me the spirits had asked for my Mother and she'd… gone with them."

Zhi grimaced. "I'm really sorry, I shouldn't have asked you to tell me. You know, it wasn't any of my business and…" he was cut off mid-sentence.

"No," Suki said, her voice returning to normal, "it's alright. They say it's good to talk about these kinds of things. I'm not exactly sure how, but that's what Oyajii says."

Zhi could only nod. He tried to think of something else to say, something to make his neighbor feel better, but nothing seemed right.

"After that, I went to live with Oyajii and his family, and when I reached the age of eight I began my training to become a Kyoshi Warrior. I suppose… the loss of my parents… though I can't really say I lost my father, sort of made me who I am today."

"Well… I'd say you turned out just fine," said Zhi, finding his voice.

Suki smirked. "I guess I did, though I can't exactly say being imprisoned is a great accomplishment."

Zhi shrugged and shifted to a different seated position. There was a pause in the conversation and both captives sat quietly, waiting for the other to speak.

"Hey, how's your arm doing, Zhi?" asked Suki, pointing to the sling.

"Hmm… well, I haven't really tested it out any, just been letting it rest. You think it's better by now?" he asked, looking down at his arm.

"Maybe," she said. "It's been about five days since I treated it so you should be able to remove the sling. Just be careful with it, okay?"

Zhi grinned and slipped his arm out of the sling. Hearing Miss Suki express genuine concern for him was reassuring. He carefully ran his arm through its full range of motion. The joint seemed a bit stiff and slightly sore but in no way reminiscent of the agonizing pain he'd suffered days before.

"Ahh, much better," said Zhi while stretching out his arm. "Thanks again for helping me, Miss Suki."

She smiled and bowed her head. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"So, getting tired of this place?" asked Zhi, grinning.

Suki turned and gave him a curious look. "You've come up with the rest of your escape plan?"

"Yup!" said Zhi with enthusiasm, "here's the plan; first, we knock out the serving guard, quietly, so he doesn't alert any other guards. Next, we'll get his keys and let ourselves out. After that, I'll change into his robes and we'll sneak out of the cell block. Hopefully we can find another guard to knock out and you can use his robes."

Suki was a bit unconvinced. "Sounds a little crude. What if we can't find one guard alone to get a disguise for me?"

"That's where my imitation of the guard's voice comes in handy," said Zhi. "See, if I pull the hat down some and try to mimic the serving guard, who could tell the difference? Especially in the low light of this prison."

"I guess that could work, but what do we do after we get my disguise? Just walk out of here?" asked Suki, raising an eyebrow. "If they realize we're not Dai Li, how will we defend ourselves?"

"Ahh, but we've actually got an advantage," Zhi said as he knocked on the iron floor of his cell. "The Dai Li agents are Earthbenders. As long as we're in this prison, their only weapons are those stone gloves. On top of that, we'll have surprise on our side if we're careful."

Suki thought for a moment, considering all of the points of Zhi's plan. "It seems like it could work, but if it's possible, I'd like to, at least, try to get my war fans back. I know the Princess used my uniform and armor to get into the palace, so it's possible that my things are still here."

Zhi gave her a nod. "I think we should look for our things, if we can. I'd like to get my Guan Dao and knife back at the very least. There's another thing I'd like to try to do," said the young soldier, looking over to his neighbor.

"What's that, Zhi?" Suki asked, placing a hand upon one of the bars separating their cells.

"Well," he said, thoughtfully, "I wanna try to get back into the palace… back to where my unit was quartered. It's my duty to bring some personal effects of my countrymen back to their families, you know?"

"I think we could try that... but Zhi, if things don't go well, we may have to abandon that part of the plan and get as far away from the palace as quickly as possible," said Suki, solemnly.

"I know… the living before the dead," said Zhi, with understanding. "Maybe we could find some of… your friends' things to bring to their families as well."

Suki nodded slowly. "I'd like that, I know their families would appreciate it, but only if we have time."

Another moment of silence fell over the two captives as they came to grips with the plan that they would have to execute if they held any hope of escaping. Talking about something and doing it were two very different things.

"So," said Zhi, breaking the silence, "shall we go out around dinner time tomorrow night?"

Suki looked over to him. He wore that silly grin upon his face from before. "That sounds just fine," she said, stifling soft laughter.

The day was set, the time was set and the moment was set. They would attempt their escape when the serving guard delivered their evening meal the next day.

**

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A.N.: ****This is the second chapter carefully beta'd by PetertheChameleon, I think it really shows how much he's helped improve this story. As always, I hope all those who read this new chapter enjoy it! I'm busy working on chapter Eight right now, The Escape!**


	8. Escape, Part One

**A.N.: Here's Chapter Eight, the Escape, part one! Finally Zhi and Suki are ready to break out of prison! This escape sequence is so long that I've been forced to break it into two parts, kind of like they do with the actual show. Hope everyone enjoys this Chapter!**

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Chapter Eight: Escape, Part One

The two prisoners went over the details of the plan several times, making sure there wouldn't be any mistakes. If something were to go wrong they could be recaptured or worse; things neither wanted to think about. Both thought up a few contingency plans just in case.

Time was running out as the serving guard's arrival approached. Both prisoners kept a close watch on the cell block door.

Suki quickly looked over to her neighbor. "So once we're out, we'll make our way across the palace grounds into the palace itself to look for your friends' things, then try to slip out one of the servant's passageways down into the city?"

Zhi didn't take his eyes off of the door. "That's about the whole of it, yes. Hopefully before we reach the palace we can find a guard or someone to interrogate for the whereabouts of our weapons and your friends' things."

Suki nodded and turned her attention back to the door. "But remember, if things go bad, we'll have to forget that part and run. From what you've told me about the palace grounds, there may even be some good places to hide, in one of the garden areas or something."

"Yeah, I think tha-" Zhi stopped abruptly as the cell block door creaked open. The guard was approaching their cells, in no way suspecting what was in store for him. Zhi shut his eyes and took a deep breath, preparing for the moment when he would spring forward and attack the guard through the bars.

He opened his eyes just as the guard was sliding Suki's food tray through the slot. He was ready; he knew what he had to do and carefully rose to a crouched position, sneaking a quick glance over at the man.

What happened next surprised him as much as it did the serving guard; in a lightning fast series of movements, Miss Suki leapt to her feet and reached through the bars, just as he was standing back up after delivering her food.

She grabbed the guard's gold and green collar with her left hand and, in a graceful movement, batted the conical hat off of his head with her right. Before he could react, she jerked backwards, pulling him forward.

As the conical hat fell to the ground, the guard's forehead made contact with one of the bars of Suki's cell. He groaned softly and Suki released her hold upon his collar, letting him slide to the floor, unconscious.

"Wow," muttered Zhi, watching as his neighbor knelt down and searched the guard. Having found what she was looking for and something more, Suki rose and turned toward Zhi.

"Ready to get out of here?" she said, smiling.

"Of course… but that was really something!" said Zhi, rising to his feet.

Suki chuckled. "I _have_ been training since I was eight years old, remember?" she said with a smirk. "Oh, and you're going to want these."

Suki held out her hand through the bars and Zhi took the two items; one, he found, was a ring of keys, no doubt for their cells, and the other was the knife from his father.

"My knife! That dirty Earthy must've taken it out of my boot when they brought me in," said Zhi, inspecting the small weapon for any damage or abuse.

"I thought you'd be happy to have that back. Now I think we should hurry up and get moving."

"Think you're right." Zhi returned his knife to its sheath in the ankle guard of his boot. He then quickly unlocked his cell and his neighbor's before grabbing the unconscious guard by his feet and dragging him back into the cell.

The two former captives managed to remove the guard's green and gold outer robe and black under robe, as well as his black leather boots, leaving him in his white underclothes. They placed him in a seated position with his back against the bars, arms pulled back, and crossed behind him.

Using the strap from Zhi's coin pouch, they tied his wrists together, and, to ensure the guard remained silent even if he awoke, they used a large handkerchief as a gag. They finished by shutting the cell's door and locking it up.

"Alright, I'm going to change into these robes, so… don't peek or anything," said Zhi, picking up and dusting off the guard's robes.

Suki rolled her eyes. "Alright, if it makes you feel better," she said, before turning her back to her companion, facing down the cell block.

He quickly tugged off his armored bracers and bicep pieces, setting them aside. Next, he removed his outer armor and the black shoulder guard collar piece. Beneath this, he wore a long sleeved gray uniform shirt, and this too was tossed aside, leaving him wearing only his gray uniform pants, his belt and his Size Two boots.

Suki snuck a quick glance over her shoulder, catching sight of Zhi's bare, pale back, but what caught her eye was a series of black characters painted on or burned into the underside of his right forearm. Before she could get a better look, he'd slipped the black robe over his head and into place before snatching up the green outer one.

Soon Zhi had the outer robe on and was pleased to find that it fit him quiet well. He turned and picked up one of the guard's boots but promptly set it back down next to its mate. _T__hose are not going to fit me. I'll just keep my uniform boots; no one will be able to see them underneath this robe anyway. _

Satisfied with his disguise, Zhi grabbed up the conical hat. He placed it upon his head and fastened the chin strap; the hat fit perfectly over his top-knot, revealing none of his black hair.

Suki was becoming rather restless, waiting for her companion. _H__ow long is he going to take? Maybe I should say something._

"Ready!" said a voice from behind her and Suki turned to face him. He stood before her, the hat pulled down over his face, hands together, hidden by the sleeves of the robe. "How do I look?" he asked, his face only visible up to his nose.

Suki inspected the disguise. "Pretty convincing, I'd say."

Zhi pushed the hat back up a bit and smiled. "Thank you. Oh, want to grab those boots there?" he said, placing his foot next to one, comparing the size difference. "I don't think you should run around barefoot… and if they don't fit very well you can use the pair off the unfortunate fellow we'll be getting the rest of your disguise from."

"That's a good idea," she said, sitting down to put on the boots. Once she had them on she took a few steps to test them out. _T__hey fit well enough... I'm sure I look silly in this awful brown robe and this red cloak with these big boots on. _

"Alright, let's go see about my disguise," said Suki, sneaking up the cell block to the iron door.

"Just a minute." Zhi scooped up his uniform and folded the cloth pieces together into an orderly stack. He tucked the bundled up uniform and armor under his arm and followed after her. "Couldn't leave my uniform behind," he said, quietly.

Suki peered back over her shoulder and chuckled softly as Zhi caught up. They stopped at the cell block door and stood in silence. Both knew the door would creak loudly, but what might be waiting on the other side, neither could say.

Together they pulled the door open very slowly. Thankfully it barely made any noise. On the other side was another cell block; this one, however, was occupied. Despite the low light from the torches that lined the wall to their right, the two escapees could see the shadowy forms of at least eight prisoners.

Zhi strode forward down the cell block, trying to appear official; he gave no notice to the prisoners in their cells, just feet away. Suki tried to do the same and followed closely behind her disguised companion. Several of the prisoners sprang to life and crowded at the front of their cells. They threatened and cursed the "Dai Li Agent" and leered at the girl in the tattered brown robe who followed him.

Suki glanced quickly at the prisoners; the loud ones were all criminal types, bearded, angry men who looked like they'd kill you as soon as look at you. These she tried hard to ignore, their lustful looks and terrible hands reaching out through the bars of their cells at her.

One reached out from beneath his bars, the hand, missing two fingers, only inches away from Suki's boot. "C'mere, little one! You'd be a lot safer with me than that Dai Li fella!" said the prisoner in a gravelly tone. Disgusted, Suki lifted the heel of her boot, turned her foot slightly and brought it down upon the prisoner's remaining fingers.

He cried out in pain and yanked his hand back under the bars, glaring at the girl. Suki wrinkled her nose at the him. _That'll teach you. _

The shout caught Zhi's attention; he had been fixated on reaching the next door and getting away from the prisoners. Now, he turned his head and looked back over his shoulder to check on his companion. She was walking along with a confident stride, seemingly unfazed by the prisoners' remarks and looks.

He'd briefly considered reaching back to take her hand, but now he wasn't sure if she would exactly appreciate such an action. The two escapees soon reached the next door, passed through into an empty cell block, and shut it behind them, leaving the cruel-looking bunch behind.

"Well, that's not something I want to do again," said Zhi, quietly.

"I think the feeling is mutual there, Zhi."

As they made their way up the next cell block, once again single file, Suki couldn't help but remember the few prisoners who had not reacted to their arrival. _T__hey just sat there… like I used to…_

Lost in thought, she nearly walked into her companion. Zhi had stopped suddenly and cupped his hands behind his ears, trying to amplify his hearing. "Someone's coming… around the corner up ahead," he whispered.

Zhi set his folded up Fire Nation gear on the ground. "Stay here and I'll go have a look." He then quickly walked up to the corner.

Suki waited all of two seconds then quietly followed after Zhi; he turned the corner and she could hear him talking to someone. Carefully she approached the corner and, with her back against the wall, peered around and down the hall.

Zhi had taken a deep breath as he turned the corner. There was another Dai Li guard approaching. He stopped as Zhi neared. "Ching, where've you been? You're late and we're supposed to have that report ready for the warden today," said the Agent.

"Sorry, I, uh… that Fire Nation prisoner was giving me trouble again, you know?" said Zhi, imitating the serving guard.

Zhi was only a few feet away from the guard when he responded. "I thought I told you, never listen to prisoners. They just try to get into your head and…" the guard's expression became cold and serious. He dropped into an Earthbending stance, his stone gloved fist held out, pointed down the hall.

"There's someone there, around the corner," he hissed.

Suki pulled back around the corner. _H__e saw me… he knows I'm here_, she thought, preparing herself for a fight.

Zhi wasn't entirely certain of just what had happened, but he acted quickly nonetheless. He reached out and took hold of the guard's wrist with his left hand and simultaneously grabbed the, now surprised, guard's shoulder with his right.

Before the guard could react, Zhi kicked his right leg out from under his robe, swept it forward and knocked the guard's left leg out from under him. With a quick tug back on the guard's shoulder, the Dai Li man toppled backwards, landing hard upon his back.

As the guard landed, the air knocked out of his lungs, Zhi quickly pinned him to the ground with a knee to the stomach. The guard's head hit the iron floor with enough force to knock the hat off of his head. Hard enough to knock him out, as well.

Suki raced around the corner and reached her companion just as the guard landed on his back. Zhi stood back up and turned around, startled to find her standing right behind him.

"Hope this guy's robes fit you," he said.

Suki sized up the unconscious agent. "Shouldn't be too bad." She looked back up at Zhi, smiling. "You're pretty good yourself, taking that guy down."

Zhi smiled, blushing slightly, though invisible in the low light. He enjoyed praise from Miss Suki; he always had. "So… let's get this fellow back down to that empty cell block. We can get his robes off and tie him up back there like we did with the serving guy," he said, bending down to take hold of one of the guard's legs.

They dragged him back and bound his wrists around the bars using shoelaces from his boots in a similar method as they'd done with the former owner of Zhi's disguise. Suki took the guard's robes, and some of his underclothing as well, and quickly changed in the hallway. Zhi had turned his back to her without request and waited until she'd finished.

"I'm ready. Tell me what you think," she said, standing in a regal pose, clad in the green black and gold robes of the Dai Li.

"Very nice!" said Zhi, enjoying the sight. "You look different without that makeup on… Good, look good… very..." He trailed off, noticing she'd wiped most of it off with a handkerchief she'd found on the guard. _She really is beautiful… _he thought, as several different compliments came to mind.

Suki grinned and shook her head. "Come on, stop staring and let's get going. I'll bet the warden knows where our things are."

"That's what I was thinking too," said Zhi, nodding. He quickly retrieved his uniform and armor, tucking the bundle back under his arm as before. The two escapees started off again, in search of the warden.

As they made their way down the hallway where Zhi had knocked out the second guard, Suki quickly knelt down and picked up the discarded hat, placing it upon her head.

Walking along through the seemingly endless maze of hallways, she could easily remember the way Zhi had looked at her. _H__e does give me some funny looks at times, doesn't he? The same way Sokka did…_ She felt odd thinking about such things and tried to concentrate on what she would have to do when they met the warden.

He would no doubt be a skilled Earthbender, probably a veteran Dai Li Agent, too. _What if he's got other guards with him? This may be difficult, _thought Suki, certain they were getting close.

After wandering the halls of the prison for what seemed like an eternity, the two escapees came upon a hallway with many wooden doors instead of the usual iron ones. It seemed as if they'd reached the administrative wing of the prison.

"Look over there," whispered Suki, pointing down the hall at a door near the end. The door was left slightly ajar and light shone out into the hallway.

"Someone's burning the midnight oil," said Zhi, quietly. The two escapees pulled their hats down to cover their faces and slowly approached the door. When they were both positioned before the door, they took a few peeks inside; the only occupant of the room was an older-looking man seated behind a large desk. He wore the robes of a Dai Li officer, the ornate golden collar distinguishing his rank.

The man appeared to be busy working through a few large stacks of paperwork, his fingers stained with red stamp and black calligraphy inks. He was so consumed in his work that he didn't even look up when Suki and Zhi slipped into his office, locking the door behind them.

Without taking his eyes off an official-looking document he addressed the two disguised escapees. "Ching, Cai, you're late. You were supposed to have finished feeding our guests and returned here ten minutes ago."

"I'm sorry, Warden, we ran into some trouble. It was unavoidable," said Zhi, using his guard imitation, hoping that the man before him _was_ the warden.

The Warden looked up from his work, jade eyes studying the two Agents. "What kind of troub… wait, you're not Ching!" he shouted, rising quickly from his chair.

Before the Warden could get around his desk, Zhi dropped into the stance he'd seen Firebenders use, right arm extended with two fingers pointed directly at the man's throat. "Don't make a sound or I'll turn you to ash!" he barked, trying to sound threatening.

The warden hesitated, unsure of what to do. In the split second he stood, staring dumbly at Zhi's fingers, Suki had moved quickly behind the older man. She grabbed his wrists, pinned them together behind his back, and pushed him over onto the desk.

He landed, bent over the desk, with a crash, his chest crushing the stacks of paperwork that he'd been working on only seconds before. A bottle of calligraphy ink was knocked on its side, the ink running all over the papers and splashing up on the warden's face.

The warden struggled and grunted. "Let me go! Let me go! You'll pay for this!" he shouted, unable to wriggle out of Suki's grip. He began to buck and kick wildly, trying to free himself, cursing his disguised assailants.

It took both of them to finally subdue the frantic Dai Li officer, and even more effort to get him tied securely to his chair. He stopped shouting once they had him tied down and sat quietly sneering at the two escapees. Once they'd removed their hats, he recognized them; he knew all of the prisoners, having memorized their files.

Suki and Zhi conferred in whispers on the other side of the room, hopefully out of earshot of the Warden.

"What was that when we first came in here? I thought you said you couldn't bend," Suki said, still a bit surprised by Zhi's diversion.

Zhi shrugged. "I can't. I just figured he might fall for it, at least for a second."

"Well… it did work. Now, we need to get this guy to tell us where our things are. Any ideas?"

"Ahh, not really. He hasn't said anything since we tied him up, so… I doubt he's going to just tell us where our things are," replied Zhi.

Suki snuck a glance over at the warden. _I'm not going to like this…, _she thought,_ but it may be the only way_. "I think I've got an idea to get him talking... Let's see if it works."

As the two escapees whispered back and forth in the corner, the warden paid them little attention. He was far more interested in the thin layer of sand and dirt that had been, over time, tracked into his office. There was just enough of it on the iron floor to bend, though it would take considerable concentration.

Before he could focus on the dirt and sand enough to do anything with it, his attention was drawn away as Suki and Zhi approached.

Zhi sat down on the desk to the right side of the bound warden while Suki leaned nonchalantly against the wall to his left. "There're really two ways we can do this, warden," said Zhi, placing his hands on the edge of the table, leaning forward a bit.

"The quick and easy way…"

"Or the hard way," added Suki, finishing her companion's sentence.

The warden's expression changed to one of amusement and he chuckled. "You really expect me to tell you anything? You're both fools. Even if, by some miracle, you do manage to escape the palace grounds, I promise I shall see your lifeless bodies delivered to King Long Feng before the sun sets tomorrow."

Zhi frowned and turned to Suki. "It looks like it's going to have to be the hard way."

Suki gracefully stepped forward, standing before the warden. She placed her hand beneath his chin, forcing him to look up at her, trying to replicate the same interrogative techniques that the Fire Nation's Princess had used upon her.

"You _are _going to tell us exactly what we want to know, do you understand me?" she said, in the same cold and cruel tone Azula had used. Zhi shivered; he'd never thought Miss Suki capable of sounding so merciless.

The warden seemed a bit taken aback. A flicker of fear shone in his cold jade eyes but it passed quickly, his silent defiance unbroken.

"Oh, still don't want to cooperate?" said Suki, tracing a finger up the Warden's cheek.

The man shook his head away from Suki's hand and gave her a cold stare. "I shall tell you nothing, child," he spat.

Suki began to feel less confident in her interrogation abilities; just acting cold and cruel wasn't working. She thought back to the tortures the Princess had put her and her friends through when questioning them about the Avatar's bison. The pain – she could still remember right where the Fire Nation Royal had pressed.

"You'll regret that decision," she said flatly, then dug one of her knuckles into his side. Striking the pressure point produced the same effect that it had had on her; the warden tensed up, gritted his teeth and let out a groan. Suki lightened the pressure slightly, but the man only sneered at her.

The next thing Suki knew, she'd practically without thinking grabbed the man's left shoulder to hold him still, then once again attacked the pressure point, this time with far more force than before. He groaned louder, straining against his restraints. "You'll… pay for this… I'll see that... your death is long and… painful," the warden muttered, in agony.

Suki took her hands off of the man. _What did I just do..? Why won't he just tell me! If he'd tell me I could stop this… _she though, conflicted over what to do next. Soon frustration got the better of her and she turned to Zhi.

"Your knife," she demanded.

He stared for a moment, seemingly confused, then, in a mechanical motion, reached down and removed the knife from its sheath before holding it out by the blade to Suki. She snatched it from his hand and held it up, inspecting the small weapon. The warden looked up at the knife, the flicker of fear returning to his eyes, now fixated upon the blade.

Zhi found his voice, a bit shaky at first. "All… all you need to do is tell us where you're keeping her things and my weapon. If you do that, we'll simply leave."

The warden's eyes turned back to the girl standing over him but he remained silent. Zhi watched as she placed the flat of the knife's blade against the warden's face, the tip just two inches below his left eye. The warden said nothing, but as Suki applied slight pressure to the blade, just enough to draw blood, his face drained of color and he seemed to go rigid.

"Do you want to know what we'll do with you if you don't tell us?" asked Suki, moving the knife back, away from the man's face. She stopped a few inches away, however, and pointed the tip at the warden's eye.

Still seated on the desk, Zhi reached into his robe and removed the ring of keys, setting them on the desk, within the warden's view.

Suki tilted her head to one side slightly. "If you don't tell us, we'll see that you spend some time with your 'guests' here. I'm sure they would enjoy the company of their captor, especially if he's unable to Earthbend."

There was an immediate response; the warden's eyes went wide and he swallowed hard. "Your things… I'll tell you where they're being kept," he croaked, a scowl crossing his aged face.

Suki returned the knife to Zhi and stepped back. A wave of relief swept over her; she no longer had to imitate the horrible methods employed by the demon Princess. Every moment of her imitation had felt sickening and only reminded her of the way she and her friends had been treated. But what frightened her more than that was the ease at which she'd lost control of herself, even if just for a few moments.

"Your fans and outfit are being kept with two others like it down the hall and to the left… the last door at the end," said the Warden in a contemptuous tone. He then turned to Zhi. "And your polearm along with the rest of your comrades' things are being stored in the servant's room that you _took_. They're all dead too, might I add." He smiled cruelly at the last bit.

He considered mentioning the fate of the other Kyoshi Warrior who had been brought in with Suki but thought better of it; the sooner he was left alone, the better.

"Let's go, Zhi…" said Suki, turning toward the door.

Zhi rose from the edge of the desk and returned the ring of keys to its place in his robe; he didn't look at the warden and quickly followed Suki out the door into the hallway.

The warden watched them close the door, leaving him alone. He turned his attention back to the sand on the floor. Not only would he soon free himself, but he now knew exactly where the two would go.

As the dirt slowly rose from the floor and snaked though the air, the small wisp of sand wearing against the ropes that bound his hands, the warden smirked to himself.

Out in the hallway the two escapees paused. Zhi looked over to Suki who stood with her arms folded over her chest, stooped over a bit as if she was cold. He carefully approached her. "Are… you alright Miss Suki?"

She turned quickly to look at him. "Yes… I just… I hated that in there, you know?"

"The way you were questioning the warden? I… that was pretty, well, frightening. I have to admit. But, I understand that you… we had to get him to talk," said Zhi, cautiously placing his hand upon her shoulder.

"I suppose you're right." Suki set her left hand upon Zhi's. "Now… we should get going."

Zhi nodded slowly then knelt and picked up his folded uniform that he'd left outside the warden's office. Then he followed her down the hall so she could retrieve her things. The next part, making their way to the Palace and escaping into the city, was about to begin and neither expected it to be an easy task.

* * *

**A.N.: And there's part one. Hope all my readers liked it. Part two is nearly done but may still be a while. **


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